One in seven Ukrainians who lost job after Russia invasion still unemployed

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, almost 15 percent of Ukrainians have lost their jobs, and seven out of ten Ukrainians had to change their qualifications when looking for a new job, a new survey has revealed.

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Among those Ukrainians who are currently unemployed, 77 percent did not work before the full-scale war, and another five percent retired after it began, a survey conducted by the Razumkov Centre and commissioned by Mirror of the Week, a Ukrainian newspaper, shows.

10.4 percent of the current unemployed lost their jobs after February 2022, and another 4.2 percent resigned voluntarily. The main reasons for job losses are related to the shutting down of enterprises and forced migration.

Thus, 29.5 percent of those who lost their jobs after February 2022 did this because of the shutting down of an enterprise, termination or suspension of its operation, and 14.3 percent due to staff reductions.

12.9 percent of Ukrainians surveyed lost their jobs because they left the area where they worked, and 8.7 percent because they temporarily went abroad and lost their jobs during this time. Just over four percent, on the other hand, did not agree to relocation and lost their jobs because their company moved to another region.

For almost 10 percent of respondents, the reason for losing their jobs was family circumstances that changed with the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Almost 7.5 percent cited low wages or non-payment as the reason for leaving their jobs.

Meanwhile, among those who kept their jobs, lives changed for nearly 40 percent; 57.9 percent still work in the same way as before the full-scale war; while 12.6 percent changed their jobs.

Almost 11 percent of Ukrainians work fewer hours than before; 5.5 percent remained at the same company but changed their position; and 4.6 percent switched to remote work. Almost four percent have found additional jobs, and 2.2 percent started working while not having been employed before the war.

Among those who changed jobs after February 2022, more than 70 percent of respondents said they had to change their qualifications and acquire new skills. More than 40 percent of them agreed to do so because their field of employment had changed significantly, while 30 percent remained in a related field but still had to learn new skills.

Only 26.4 percent of respondents managed to change jobs without changing their qualifications.

The survey was conducted face-to-face in 22 Ukrainian regions and the city of Kyiv from 23 to 28 June 2023, and included 2018 respondents aged 18 and over. The theoretical sampling error does not exceed 2.3 percent.