Young men allowed to travel abroad amid military draft creates short-term workforce gaps, Ukrainian official says

A recent Ukrainian government resolution allowing young men aged 18 to 22, previously barred from leaving the country and still eligible for the military draft, to travel abroad has caused temporary labor market imbalances, though authorities say the measure aims at long-term benefits.

Fedir Venislavskyi, a member of parliament and of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence, made the remarks during a briefing at the Media Center Ukraine.

“From an economic perspective, we need to lay the foundation for the post-war reconstruction of our country,” Venislavskyi said. “Those young people who gain education and experience abroad will return to help rebuild. I don’t believe this will have a major impact on the economy. There are situational imbalances when entrepreneurs report that some employees have left, but we will evaluate the effects of these decisions over the next year.”

Venislavskyi added that ongoing mobilization efforts do not affect the permission for these young men to travel abroad.

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news