Labor market in times of war: what is happening in the South?

«Progressive and Strong» continues to work on the implementation of the pilot project in partnership with the Dutch organization Glocalshift and the French organization Cegos. The idea of the project is to study the labor market in the South of Ukraine to support the residents of this region, including IDPs currently living in the South.

In this article, we will talk about the attendance of representatives of the NGO «Progressive and Strong» at two important events for the labor market in the South of Ukraine. The first of them was the Regional Forum in Odesa «Training of Specialists in Vocational Education Centers of the State Employment Service: Training Ukrainians for Business Needs». The forum brought together more than 200 employers, government officials, business representatives, NGOs from different regions of Ukraine, and social partners of the Employment Service.

The event discussed such issues as the challenges of the labor market in the southern regions of Ukraine and the development of ways to overcome them; the capabilities of the Odesa Center for Vocational Education of the State Employment Service to train, retrain and retrain unemployed people registered with the Employment Service, employees of enterprises, organizations and institutions and other persons; reforming the system of support and development of labor potential.

Among other discussions, the business side of the forum emphasized the overly long training periods for specialists. A significant number of employers testified that the training periods at the Center for Vocational Education and Training are too long for most professions, and therefore advised to reduce them. To address this problem, it was suggested that the management of the State Employment Service of Ukraine, the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Education should work together to review the training periods for specialists, especially for those specialties for which the terms have not been reviewed for many years. The recent revision of the training period for chefs and the reduction of the training duration from 9 to 3.5 months is an example of a possible positive and quick solution to this issue.

Many employers testified that although they are aware of the VET Center's capabilities and use its services, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find people who are willing to study and work. To solve this problem, it was suggested that regional employment centers and employers should work together to recruit workers and conduct career guidance interviews with the unemployed with the participation of representatives of employment centers and employers.

The IVth Forum «Business and the Armed Forces of Ukraine: Dual Purpose Vocational Education» was another platform for discussing labor market issues. The forum discussed training young people for the professions of the future, dual-use professional standards, and the possibility of building an effective system for integrating veterans and the disabled into civilian life.

Speakers highlighted current labor market issues, the needs of the army and professional education in times of war.

One of the main topics was the issue of personnel shortage, which continues to grow. The Odesa Center for Vocational Education of the State Employment Service currently offers training in 33 professions. The duration of training at vocational education centers is 3-5 months, and professional skills can be confirmed in qualification centers in just 3 days.

Regarding internally displaced persons, it was emphasized that there are about 5 million of them in Ukraine, of which only 70,000 have expressed a need for employment. The reasons why many IDPs do not seek employment include: psychological unpreparedness, family circumstances and uncertainty about their future place of residence. A separate opinion was expressed that many people work in the shadow market.

Both forums served as platforms for discussing current labor market issues in times of war. Representatives of business, government agencies and NGOs emphasized the need to develop dual-purpose professional education, retraining and integration of internally displaced persons and veterans into the workforce. It was especially valuable to hear about business problems from the business itself. Simultaneously understanding the wishes of job seekers who are ready to change can be a step towards qualitative changes in the labor market.