It is already the 27th day of the war in Ukraine and there are no signs of the conflict ending anytime soon. As a result, the number of Ukraine refugees registered in Germany is steadily increasing and is now estimated at over 225.000 or more.

EU decision makes it possible for Ukrainian refugees to start work

We Executive Search Consultants know from personal contacts that there is a great deal of interest in finding work in Germany as quickly as possible in order to provide financial support for the relatives who remain in the Ukraine. Refugees were initially concerned about the lengthy asylum procedures with the accompanying ban on employment, which fortunately are not necessary due to the activation of the so-called mass influx directive by the EU. Because the protection status, which is regulated by this EU directive, means that refugees from the Ukraine do not have to apply for asylum, but receive a residence permit that enables them to work, do an apprenticeship or study in Germany.

According to this, Ukrainians who want to work in this country do not have to report a job change to an authority, nor do they have to go through a professional recognition procedure for unregulated activities, they have “comprehensive access to the labour market”. For all other professions, the regulations of the respective professional groups apply.

Ukraine strong in science and engineering

Even if there are no exact statistics so far, it can be assumed that the majority of employable Ukrainian refugees are women, because men between the ages of 18 and 60 are not allowed to leave the country due to the war. Refugee males aged 18-60 are believed to be foreigners themselves but have a residence permit for Ukraine. It is not yet possible to foresee how many of these refugee women will actually be available for the job market, since the majority of them will possibly take care of their children and families. Overall, preliminary estimates from the Zeit assume that at least 50 percent of the “refugees” are academics.

According to Kooperation International, one of the strengths of the Ukrainian education system is the comparatively high proportion of university graduates who graduate in technical subjects. Ukraine thus surpasses the average values ​​of the OECD.

With regard to the professional profile and scientific publications, a specialization in the following fields can be determined (selection based on the specialization index country share/world share ≥ 1.3):

• Physics and astronomy (20.1 percent, world: 7.8 percent, Germany: 9.6 percent)
• Engineering (14.9 percent, world: 10 percent, Germany: 9.3 percent)
• Materials science (12.6 percent, world and Germany: 6.0 percent)
• Mathematics (7.6 percent, world: 4.3 percent and Germany: 4.6 percent)
• Energy (4.5 percent, world: 2.1 percent, Germany: 1.6 percent).

Source: Kooperation International

Language barrier could make integration on the job market more difficult

On the other hand, integration into the German labour market could make language skills more difficult, especially with regard to English and German.

According to the EF English Proficiency Index , Ukraine ranks only in the middle, ranking 40th at the “Intermediate” level. So far little is known about knowledge of German and this will only be available in exceptional cases, for example through a linguistics degree or private courses. At least one can say that in the past there was quite a bit of interest in learning German,. According to Welt, Ukraine was the 5th country with the most learners of German.

Free recruiting out of solidarity with refugees from Ukraine

Due to this situation, we, as a executive search consultant for the financial sector at White Horse International, have decided to also set an example and to support refugees from Ukraine, to accelerate their integration in Germany and the German labour market. For the next six months ( Extension possible) we will not charge any placement commissions from our customers such as banks, insurance companies, asset management companies and other financial service providers, should one of our proposed candidates for a vacant position be an Ukrainian refugee. This of course applies to all Ukrainians as well as other foreigners who have also fled Ukraine due to the Russian invasion.

Our executive search and recruitment services are and will always be free of charge for candidates.