At the beginning of the full‑scale invasion, unemployment in Ukraine reached 30%, and it has now been reduced to 11.4%. The reasons are mobilization, emigration, and deep structural changes in the economy. There is a labor shortage in the job market, especially among men. Vacancies exist, but there are no workers to fill them. How the war is changing attitudes toward work, which professions are being displaced from the market and which are rapidly gaining popularity, and why Ukrainians are not in a hurry to return home — was explained by Natalia Zemlyanska, Chair of the Fund for Compulsory State Social Insurance of Ukraine against Unemployment and Chair of the All‑Ukrainian Trade Union of Manufacturers, Entrepreneurs, and Labor Migrants.
Unemployment and Economic Challenges of War
— Ms. Natalia, the labor market situation remains difficult. Before the war, the main problem was the lack of enough vacancies, but today — a shortage of workers. Yet unemployment remains high?
Accurately estimating unemployment during the war is difficult because millions of people have changed their place of residence. Therefore, the State Statistics Service has not updated labor market data since the beginning of the full‑scale invasion. The National Bank makes its own estimates, showing that in September 2025 unemployment was 11.4%. Colleagues from the Demography Institute of the National Academy of Sciences estimated unemployment at around 9–10%. This is significantly lower than at the beginning of the war, when unemployment reached 30%. The largest labor shortage is among skilled workers. There is also a significant shortage of medical specialists.
Before the invasion, the government aimed for a 6% unemployment rate. In January–September 2025, the State Employment Service provided services to 506,000 job seekers, 294,000 of whom were officially unemployed. Employment (including temporary) was provided to 284,000 people — 14% more than the same period in 2024. Registered unemployment — active job seekers — amounts to about 100,000 people. On the Unified Job Portal there were 244,000 job offers, meaning about two vacancies per active seeker.
— So why can’t these 100,000 people choose a job from such a large list of 244,000 offers?
Because the requests of job seekers and employers’ offers often do not match. This situation — simultaneous labor shortages and unemployment — is called structural unemployment. The economy has changed its structure due to the war, and this affects the labor market. For example, a miner moves from the industrial east to the agricultural west — his skills are not in demand, and his salary expectations may not match market capabilities. That is why the Unemployment Fund and the Employment Service seek ways to correct these imbalances. We offer people not only jobs but also training and grants for starting or developing their own business.
— Do you have data on how many people lost their jobs specifically because of combat actions or displacement?
I do not know the exact number, but we can estimate displacement’s scale: almost 4.58 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), mostly women, and more than 800,000 are children. Additionally, about 5.7 million Ukrainians remain abroad. In total, more than 10 million people were forced to change residence — nearly one in three Ukrainians. Since the start of the invasion, 2.3 million people have received services from the Employment Service.
How the Fund Responds
The Fund supports employment through professional training — in January–September 2025, 44,000 unemployed participated. The Service issues training vouchers for priority professions to IDPs, combatants, people with disabilities, and others. Employers receive compensation for hiring specific unemployed groups. These programs have helped thousands find jobs.
Women in Production and “Male” Professions
The war has led companies to hire women in jobs traditionally considered male. Gender barriers are breaking down due to the urgent need for workers. Now, 79.5% of registered unemployed are women. Women taking “male” jobs generally receive wages equal to men’s.
An experimental training project for women began in February 2025. Many women have completed training and been employed.
Retraining and Support for Small Business
The Fund assists employers with recruiting, training, and compensating social contributions for hiring certain categories. Unemployed and entrepreneurs can receive support to start or expand a business — the “єRobota” program provides non‑repayable grants.
Grants for combatants and persons with war‑related disabilities began in 2023. Grant size depends on the application and requires job creation.
Since December 2023, the State Employment Center joined a government grant program for processing industry projects — individual grants can reach 8 to 16 million UAH.
Retraining Programs
Retraining is a core activity of the Employment Service. People receive training from licensed providers in 156 professions, including IT, construction, medicine, and more.
Role of International Support
The Employment Service participates in the Skills4Recovery project funded by the EU and implemented with Polish partners. The goal is to provide the Ukrainian economy with skilled workers by strengthening vocational education and aligning it with labor market needs.
