Ukrainian migrant workers discover Lithuania
"In 2012, 1,916 people approached us with such a request, in 2014 – 3,157, in 2015 – already 4,419. This year we have already issued permits to 6,014 Ukrainians," says Jurate Baublene, a representative of the labor exchange.
One of those currently waiting for such a permit is Vasyl, a 37-year-old foreman of a group of builders. He had already worked in Lithuania for a year on a work visa. After it expired, Vasyl returned to Kyiv and submitted documents for a new visa. Vasyl assesses his chances of obtaining it as high, since he provided all the necessary documents, certificates and certifications. Under Lithuanian law, as a rule, in such cases the applicant must have a written employment contract with a Lithuanian company, as well as possess certain knowledge and qualifications.
"I have a higher education, I am a manager-economist, but circumstances turned out such that a few years ago I had to master a construction trade. To get a job in Lithuania, for example, I needed the specialty of a painter-plasterer-high-altitude worker. I had to look for work in Lithuania due to a significant reduction in wages and rising prices in Ukraine," says Vasyl. Although he likes Lithuania as a construction foreman, he admits that he does not plan to emigrate from Ukraine at the moment.
Tetiana Dziuba is also in Lithuania on a work visa. She is co-founder and director of the public organization Inovatyvios švietimo programos jaunimui ("Innovative Education Programs for Youth"). At the same time, Dziuba also registered a company in Ukraine that helps Ukrainians connect with employers in Lithuania and Poland and find work there.
Dziuba admitted that the Lithuanian language is difficult for her. In various state institutions where all documentation is in Lithuanian, she sometimes has to use the services of an interpreter. According to Tetiana, the employment process in Lithuania is more complicated than in Poland. In particular, it is necessary to prepare and submit a whole package of documents. As a result, to obtain a work visa, you have to wait from two and a half to three months. In Poland, according to her, all formalities take only about a week.
Nerijus Maciulis, chief economist at Swedbank in Lithuania, agrees that, although there are many vacancies in the country, bureaucratic barriers negatively affect labor migration from other countries, particularly from Ukraine. Maciulis adds that the level of salaries in the country (minimum – 380 euros, average after taxes – 600 euros) also does not reflect well on the desire to work in Lithuania. According to the economist, because of this, the number of Ukrainian labor migrants in Lithuania will grow slowly.
Nevertheless, Dziuba notes, Ukrainians are beginning to be more interested in working in Lithuania than in Poland: "Workers claim that in Lithuania they are treated more honestly, and companies that have invited foreigners to work are more strictly controlled. In Poland, they offer the same work as in Lithuania, sometimes even promising a higher salary. But then they start making various deductions, so the result is significantly less." According to Dziuba, foreign workers in Lithuania feel more protected and confident. He adds that Lithuanians treat Ukrainians kindly.
While some Ukrainians temporarily work in Lithuania, others move to this country for permanent residence. Among such migrants is 37-year-old Ukrainian musician and composer Pavlo Pavlosiuk. His wife Marija has Lithuanian roots, so the whole family was able to move to Lithuania under the resettlement program from the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine for Lithuanians and persons of Lithuanian descent.
"We are from Donetsk. When the war started, we left there and settled near Kyiv, in the town of Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi. There I worked as a teacher at one and a half times the rate, which came out to about 100 euros in equivalent. I also gave private lessons in Kyiv. If it weren't for them, we would have kicked the bucket," Pavlosiuk shares memories with Deutsche Welle. In Lithuania, he and his wife plan to find work in their field.
"Lithuanian business would benefit if more and more residents of Ukraine came here in search of work. But, as far as I know, labor emigrants from Ukraine currently do not have a significant impact on our labor market," sums up Professor Vlada Stankuniene, head of the Center for Demographic Research at Vytautas Magnus University.