The largest employers in Ukraine in 2025 – Ukrzaliznytsia, ATB, Ukrposhta, Silpo and others
Three years of full-scale war have dramatically changed the labor market in Ukraine. Some companies have optimized their staff, while others are growing rapidly.
The country's largest employer remains Ukrzaliznytsia – almost 180,000 employees in 2025, according to data from Openatabot. At the same time, the company reduced its staff by 5% over the year, and since the beginning of the great war, it has already lost 54,000 people.
LIGA.net tells which companies remain the largest employers in Ukraine, who is laying off staff and who is actively expanding staff even during the war.
10 largest employers in Ukraine in 2025
For the fourth year in a row, Ukrzaliznytsia has been at the top of the list of largest employers. However, the total number of employees continues to decline: minus 9,000 employees over the year.
ATB-Market holds the second place with more than 46,000 employees. The company is growing steadily: in 2024 alone, about 2,000 new jobs were created due to the development of the sales network and logistics.
Companies with the Most Employees in Ukraine in 2025 (Infographic: Nazariy Prysyazhnyuk / LIGA.net)
Ukraine's gas distribution networks – a newcomer to the top – showed the fastest growth: +12.5% over the year to almost 38,000 employees.
Which companies have laid off the most employees
Over the year, only four companies out of the top ten reduced the number of employees. The largest was Ukrzaliznytsia, which reduced its staff by more than 9,000 people. In the Forests of Ukraine, the number of staff decreased by 20%, which is about 6,000 employees. The reason is internal optimization and reorganization of forestry management. About 3,000 people were laid off at Ukrposhta and 1,800 at Energoatom.
Which companies are growing the fastest out of the top ten
In addition to the three leaders in terms of growth – Gas Distribution Networks of Ukraine (+12.5%), Silpo (+4.9%) and ATB (+4.5%) – several other large companies are showing positive dynamics.
Nova Poshta increased its staff by 4.5%, Ukrnafta – by 3.2%, Ukrgazvydobuvannya – by 2.9%. All of them are increasing their staff due to the expansion of logistics infrastructure, growth of retail network, or increased demand for energy resources.
The fastest growing companies outside the top ten
There are companies that did not make it to the top ten, but are showing strong growth rates. Aurora has quadrupled its staff from 3,000 to more than 12,000 employees since the start of the full-scale war. The company is actively opening new stores even in frontline regions.
NovaPay, a fintech from the " Nova Poshta " group, grew by 7.5% in 2024, thanks to the launch of new services and expansion of its business areas.
EVA added 2% to staff in 2024, opening new stores in western and central regions.
McDonald's maintains stable growth: +0.2%, almost 10,000 employees. The company is slowly recovering to pre-war levels, but supports its team by indexing salaries annually, providing health insurance, financial assistance to war victims, and paying salaries to those mobilized.
Despite the war, the labor market in Ukraine is showing signs of recovery. Large players are adapting to the new environment, while medium-sized businesses are actively gaining momentum. The winners are those who do not cut back on people costs and expand their presence even in times of crisis.