In Ukraine, 4.8 million people lost their jobs due to the war. This is stated in the report of the International Labor Organization (ILO), which is a UN agency.
In the event of an escalation of hostilities, the number of jobs lost will increase to seven million. If hostilities cease immediately, 3.4 million people can be quickly reinstated.
In total, of the 4.8 million people who have lost their jobs, 1.2 million are refugees and the other 3.6 million are unemployed in Ukraine.
More than 5.23 million refugees have left Ukraine since February 24. Refugees are mostly women, children, and people over 60 years of age. Of the total number of refugees, about 2.75 million are of working age. Of these, 43.5%, or 1.2 million people, had previously worked and lost their jobs or resigned as a result of the war.
The organization emphasizes that the Ukrainian government has made significant efforts for social protection: this is about payments to internally displaced persons.
However, the war in Ukraine could lead to job disruptions in neighboring countries, mainly Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. If the fighting continues, Ukrainian refugees will be forced to stay longer, which will put additional pressure on the labor market and social protection systems in these and neighboring countries and increase unemployment in many of them.