The Ukrainian labor market reaches critical point: how many CVs are there per vacancy and what is the main problem

In January 2025, only 168 CVs were posted per 100 vacancies in Ukraine in a week. Although it is clear that the economic situation has deteriorated during the years of full-scale war, there has also been a significant shortage of personnel. It is explained by three reasons: mobilization, migration, and emigration. Each Ukrainian region had its own economic peculiarities.

According to an OBOZ.UA article, in January 2022, before the full-scale war, almost 200 CVs were posted per 100 new vacancies in a week (40,381 vacancies versus 79,980 CVs, work.ua data). That is, on average, there were two candidates for one job. Employers complained that sometimes it was almost impossible to find an employee even then. This is especially difficult if you need a representative of a blue-collar profession.

This leads to so-called structural unemployment. IDPs have to retrain and learn new professions. However, not everyone can quickly integrate into the labor market of a foreign city. Another problem is that, according to the UN, the number of migrants outside Ukraine continues to grow, and as of December 16 last year, it reached 6.8 million people.

However, the exact number of refugees is unknown. There are some who have gone to Russia, and there is also double counting in the EU. One refugee can be counted both in Poland, where, for example, they have stayed for some time, and in Germany, where they eventually moved to.

Last year, the Center for Economic Strategy (CES) prepared an analytical report that divided all refugees into four groups. It turned out that only 16% were people from the war zone. At the same time, most of the refugees are women aged 35 to 44. These are able-bodied women, often with higher education, who went abroad with their children.

Only 10% of refugees continue to work for the Ukrainian economy (although they often spend their earnings in their host countries). "There are 35% of men among refugees. The share of men among refugees has increased significantly compared to November 2022, when it was 17%," the CES notes.

Data from large employee searching sites show that the labor market shortage has decreased. However, in reality, it is only a matter of seasonal changes. "The number of new vacancies and CVs has decreased compared to previous months, primarily due to the season change. At the same time, their annual growth accelerated, indicating a further increase in both supply and demand for labor. Despite a certain increase in labor supply, its shortage continues to limit the work of enterprises," the NBU report says.

Earlier, it was reported that artificial intelligence could replace about 40% of jobs in the world in the future. At the same time, AI is likely to affect 60% of jobs in developed economies and 26% in low-income countries, which will also influence inequality between countries.

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