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4.4 ​Labour and income
4.4.1​ Labour market, unemployment dynamics
Some 5mn Ukrainians are working overseas – mostly in Poland and Russia – which have meant companies at home are struggling to find qualified and experienced staff.
The tightness in the labour market has been pushing wages up, which rose some 10% in 2019. But with the strengthening hryvnia and falling inflation are making the conditions at home more attractive.
The recovering economy and the lack of labour have combined to push down unemployment levels faster than forecast. Unemployment in 2019 was expected to be 8.8% but had dropped to 7.3% by the third quarter, the latest data available, from around 9% over the last few years. Even so unemployment in Ukraine remains one of the highest in Europe.
Thousands of Ukrainian students are taking advantage of a new law that allows them to work in Germany for up to three months, ​reports Deutsche Welle. “In recent years, agencies that offer temporary employment opportunities in Germany for students have popped up all over Ukraine,” reports the story, headlined DHL's Ukrainian temps experience the dark side of Christmas. “Websites advertise openings for package handlers, cooks and cleaners.”
16​ UKRAINE Country Report​ February 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com