To get unemployment benefits in Ukraine, one has to register with the government’s employment service, where people without jobs are offered available vacancies. However, the average monthly wage offered to job seekers via the government employment service is only USD 270 (7,443 hryvnia), Finance.ua reported.

Working for USD 270 per month

You may find it shocking that such positions exist and legal, but the minimum monthly wage in Ukraine was 5,000 hryvnia (USD 180) until 1 January 2021, lifted to 6,000 hryvnia (USD 216) from 1 January 2021.

This is why it’s not surprising that there are vacancies offering such salaries. It is also not surprising that there were 58 thousand such vacancies unfilled, as of 1 December 2020.

• 24% of vacancies in the government employment service were for qualified labourers able to work with certain instruments.
• 16% of vacancies offered jobs in servicing machinery.
• 13% of jobs were for professionals.
• 12% of vacancies were for people with no qualifications.

In October 2020 the average wage in Ukraine was 10,887 hryvnia (about USD 400), which is nearly 50% higher than the pay checks that employers offer to jobless candidates from the government’s employment service.

Certainly, the cost of life in Ukraine is much lower than in other countries of Europe, although it is the largest state with the territory fully located within the geographical boundaries of the European continent.

Commercial recruiters

Commercial recruitment portals list much higher average wages offered to job seekers. For instance, on Work.ua the most popular position is “sales manager” with the average monthly salary offered of 17,500 hryvnia (USD 630). But often behind such a title is a job of a sales rep on commissions and the size of the salary isn’t guaranteed.

The second most popular position of “seller” is the regular job of a shop assistant, where the wage is listed at 10,000 hryvnia (USD 360). That’s a more realistic proposition with the actual wage that people are likely to earn.

Other popular vacancies:

• Driver: 15,000 hryvnia ($540)
• Accountant: 12,000 hryvnia ($430)
• Administrator: 10,500 hryvnia ($380)
• Cashier: 9,500 hryvnia ($340)
• Cleaner: 6,500 hryvnia ($240)

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Read also:

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• Two Ukrainian women who make money selling non-existing outfits
• How many people in Ukraine earn more than USD 888 a month?
• How much the first job in Ukraine may pay?