KIEV, Sept 12 (Askume) – After years of working in “boring, sedentary” positions in the offices of several Ukrainian companies, Lilia Shulha found herself her dream job as a truck driver at Ukraine’s leading retailer Fozzy Group.
“I have always dreamed of buying a big car. As a child, I preferred driving a car to playing with dolls,” she told Askume.
“What is happening now is that they even bring inexperienced people for training. I am lucky,” said Shurha, 40, standing in front of a large truck wearing a company uniform.
The workforce is shrinking due to the war with Russia , and companies are trying to make up for the significant shortage by hiring more women in traditionally male-dominated roles and turning to teenagers, students, and older workers.
Analysts say the jobs crisis could threaten economic growth and post-war recovery as millions of people, mostly women and children, flee abroad during wars and thousands of men join the military.
Ukraine has lost more than a quarter of its workforce since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, central bank data shows.
A survey of over 3,000 companies by the Ministry of Economic Affairs showed that nearly 60% said finding skilled workers was their main challenge.
“The situation is really serious,” said Tetiana Petruk, chief sustainability officer at steel company MetInvest, which is one of the biggest employers in Ukraine with around 45,000 employees. There are around 4,000 vacancies.
“We recognize that the shortage of workers is impacting our production,” Petruk told Askume in an online interview.
“The shortage of workers is felt not just by us, but by all companies in the area, including our contractors.”
Askume interviewed representatives of nine Ukrainian companies, including large industrial firms, retail groups and small private entrepreneurs. All cited staff shortages and a growing skills gap as key challenges.
Companies say they are changing hiring and business practices, automating, replacing existing workers and expanding their job descriptions, rehiring retired employees and offering more benefits, especially to younger workers.
They also had to raise their salaries. The current average monthly salary is around 20,000 hryvnia ($470), while a year ago it was about 14,500 hryvnia.
“Gender and age bias in the selection of candidates is changing significantly as employers adjust their criteria to attract the necessary workers,” the Kiev School of Economics said. This trend also extends to the entrepreneurial sphere, where the proportion of female entrepreneurs is significantly on the rise.”
More women
The central bank said male-dominated industries were worst hit by the shortage of workers.
The construction, transport and mining industries have all been affected by military mobilisation, for which men aged 25 to 60 are eligible. To keep the economy going, governments are providing full or partial breaks for essential companies.
100% of workers in the energy and weapons production sectors are eligible to defer military service. In some other industries, companies can retain 50% of their male workforce. But the process for obtaining an extension is long and complicated.
Some businesses say the number of men supporting informal employment has increased since the government tightened mobilisation rules this year, leaving them out of public data records.
Women receive training as tractor drivers in the agricultural region south of Nikolaev. Women also work as tram and truck drivers, coal miners, security guards and warehouse workers, the company said.
“We are providing training and jobs to women with minimal experience,” said Lyubov Ukraints, human resources director at Silpo, a Fozzy Group company.
The company has six female truck drivers, including Shulha, and is actively recruiting women for other jobs, including loaders, meat cutters, packers and security guards, that were previously dominated by men.
The proportion of female employees is rising in industries such as steel production. Petruk said women make up about 30-35% of MetInvest’s workforce, and the company now employs women in some underground jobs. MetInvest was unable to provide comparative data from before the war.
Other women are unable or unwilling to enter the workforce because of a lack of child care. Shulha works 15 days a week on the street and has moved back in with her parents to care for her 14-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter.
young people
Businesses and economists expect labor market challenges to persist. Employers are increasingly focusing on young people, providing training, job experience, and targeted benefits.
MetInvest, which previously focused on students, is increasingly working with professional universities, Petruk said.
Silpo is more actively recruiting teenagers for entry-level jobs at the supermarket and has launched a special internship program for students.
Mobile phone operator Vodafone has revamped its youth programme, giving around 50 teenagers in 12 cities the chance to gain their first work experience.
“We want to provide this young audience with their first formal job experience. Another goal is to create a talent pool,” said Ilona Voloshina of Vodafone Retail.
“We also want to understand young people,” he said during a consultation with six teenagers at a Vodafone store in Kiev.
The government and foreign partners launched several programs to retrain Ukrainians.
“We provide everyone with the opportunity, at state expense, to take up a new occupation necessary for the labour market or to improve their professional level,” said Deputy Economy Minister Tetiana Berezhna.
