The labour market in Ukraine: are migrant workers needed for the Great Recovery?

The Ukrainian labor market is facing an acute shortage of skilled workers due to mobilization, forcing employers to look for ways to attract migrant workers who can help rebuild the country. Find out what level of specialists and from which regions Ukraine needs most, as well as what conditions need to be created for their effective integration and the return of Ukrainian citizens from abroad

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Despite all the challenges of full-scale war, Ukraine remains a functioning state, fighting and preparing for large-scale reconstruction. Today, the labor market is facing a significant imbalance, caused primarily by the mobilization of over a million citizens into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This factor has become a much more significant source of labor shortages than the departure of Ukrainians abroad.

It is mobilization that has created an acute shortage of specialists in traditionally male-dominated fields such as construction, logistics (long-distance truck drivers), and highly skilled professions in agriculture (tractor drivers, combine operators).

How is Ukraine solving its labour shortage?

Currently, employers are looking for internal solutions, in particular by retraining women for professions that were previously considered male (public transport drivers, taxi drivers). At the same time, Ukraine is considering attracting labor migrants, but is approaching this issue with caution.

What specialists are needed for reconstruction?

Contrary to popular belief, Ukraine does not need a low-skilled workforce, but rather specialists with the appropriate level of knowledge necessary to rebuild the economy and industry.

Experts from the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry emphasize that priority is given to specialists with a medium level of technical education (for example, no lower than a technical college).

There is an acute need in the construction sector — according to estimates, 200,000 to 300,000 specialists are needed just to replace those who have been mobilized. Post-Soviet countries (Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan) and the Balkan region (the countries of the former Yugoslavia) are being considered to fill these vacancies. Citizens of these countries are considered to be more mentally compatible and capable of faster adaptation and assimilation into Ukrainian society. The situation is similar in agriculture, where highly skilled machine operators are needed.

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The future of the labor market: decent conditions for all

The most important stage in attracting labor will begin after the end of the war. In order to successfully compete for personnel— both foreign specialists and returning Ukrainian emigrants — the state will have to provide decent working and living conditions that are no worse than those offered by their current countries of residence.

Ukraine is open to cooperation and invites foreign specialists who are ready to join the greatest project of our time — the reconstruction of a strong and modern European state.

Photo: Freepik

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