70% of employers agree that Ukrainian workers could ease UK labour shortage

In a new survey commissioned by UK career and jobs site Reed, research has shown that four in five UK businesses are willing to hire Ukrainian refugees with six in ten hiring managers stating that the government should make it easier for refugees to enter the UK.  

According to the research, UK employers believe the leading benefits of hiring Ukrainian workers are: 

• An increase in Ukrainian workers could ease UK labour shortages (71%) 
• The potential to increase workforce diversity (33%) 
• The potential to increase cultural diversity (29%) 
• Access to skilled and qualified candidates (27%) 

The language barrier is the biggest challenge, say 59% of recruitment decision-makers with other concerns including uncertainty about the Ukrainian workforce’s skillset (36%) and uncertainty about productivity (36%).  

In response to the research, Reed.co.uk has made some of its career advice pages available in Ukrainian to assist refugees in transitioning into the UK workforce.  

James Reed, Chairman of Reed.co.uk, commented:  “If Ukrainian refugees are to settle in the UK successfully, finding them employment will be the crucial next step to fully integrating them into society for the period that they remain here.  

“It’s encouraging to see such a positive response to this refugee crisis from UK employers. The majority are enthusiastic about the prospect of hiring Ukrainian workers and have identified a range of benefits they can bring to the UK workforce.”