Ukraine let young men leave to keep teenage boys home. Restaurants now struggle to hire
Work.ua recorded 29% fewer male candidates aged 18 to 22 in hospitality and retail. Across the platform, advertised entry-level pay rose 23 to 24%.
Ukraine has been experiencing difficulties in recruiting young men for entry-level jobs, leading to increased costs for businesses. According to Lesia Prymakova, the number of male candidates aged 18 to 22 responding to vacancies on Ukraine's largest job platform fell by 19% between July 2025 and July 2026, with a steeper decline of 29% in the hospitality and retail sectors.
Despite this, advertised entry-level pay has risen close to the overall median, with a 24% increase for student vacancies and a 23% increase for jobs requiring no experience.
The government eased wartime travel restrictions for men aged 18 to 22 last summer, intending to prevent families from taking boys abroad before their 18th birthdays. However, the exact number of young men who chose to remain abroad remains unknown, as there is no reliable count. The candidate pool has shrunk since the policy change, which was aimed at discouraging families from taking boys abroad before they turn 18.
Restaurants have been particularly affected by the decline in young applicants. Sommelier Oleh Kravchenko, who owns a wine bar in Kyiv, reported that two of his staff members, a bartender and a cook, were preparing to leave the country, prompting the bar to hire more women and raise wages by 5 to 10%. Server positions, which were previously held by men, are now being filled by women. GastroFamily Group owner Olena Borysova said young applicants had become scarce over the past year.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
