– The Norwegian labor market clearly needs the Ukrainian displaced persons, says NAV director Hans Christian Holte. More than 77,000 Ukrainians have sought protection in Norway since Russia’s full-scale invasion of the neighboring country. Recently, the Norwegian authorities have taken several measures to make Norway less attractive. The NAV director has a slightly different approach. NAV director Hans Christian Holte. Photo: Trond Lydersen / news He believes that the Ukrainian refugees can help Norway, in a situation where the population is getting older and the lack of labor is increasing. – We will have major needs in the Norwegian labor market in the future, which Ukrainian refugees can help solve. We are getting older, we have large areas of society that we do not cover well enough with Norwegian labor today, says Holte. – Positive signs In a new report, Nav has investigated the path of Ukrainian refugees into the Norwegian labor market. It shows that relatively few of the Ukrainian refugees have found work in their first year in Norway. But then something happens. Among Ukrainians of working age who have been in Norway for almost two years and, about 30 percent are in work. – It is a number that can and should be higher. But it is also a figure that is higher than the refugees in general, and gives grounds for a certain optimism, says Holte. The NAV manager points to the introductory program and language skills as important factors. – Do you think more people will be employed in the future? – The combination of the fact that we have a working life that is crying out for labor in many industries and that Ukrainian displaced persons have learned basic languages means that there are positive signs, says Holte. Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl has said several times that the Norwegian authorities are considering further measures to reduce the number of Ukrainian refugees coming to Norway. Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl. Photo: William Jobling / news – Would like to live in Norway Yevhen Cherkasov’s family came to Norway from Dnipro in Ukraine after Russia’s full-scale invasion. Nine months later, Yevhen moved on. He now works at a paper factory in Hokksund. Although the job is hard, he sees a future here. – I would like to live in Norway, says Yevhen in broken Norwegian. – I want to buy a house, but it is very expensive. I would like to get a loan, but I have to work, and afterwards ask the bank. Yevhen’s wife works as a cook, his son is in the 7th grade. – At school, he talks to Norwegians every day. He speaks to me in Norwegian, and I don’t understand. My wife is also better at speaking Norwegian than I am, smiles Yevhen. Photo: Trond Lydersen / news The researchers behind the report also see signs that more Ukrainian refugees envision a future in Norway. This is supported by previous research from Oslo Met, which shows that one in three Ukrainians say that they have begun to envision Norway as their new homeland. Holte has spoken to several Ukrainian women in work training who have told the same thing. – The longer Ukrainians are in Norway, the more both they and Norway enjoy the fact that they have established relationships in working life, and become part of society, says the head of Nav. He says there are “inherent dilemmas” about the Norwegian authorities’ handling of the refugee policy, which he “doesn’t want to think much about”, but adds at the same time: – But from the perspective of the needs of Norwegian working life, it is good to see that those who have been here a time, they eventually make a good contribution to Norwegian society. – It’s not enough to just want it Kateryna Sokolova is also a Ukrainian refugee and now works at Nav with archiving. Along the way, she has had several months of work initiatives and language training in adult education. She has several theories as to why the proportion of Ukrainians in work is not even higher. Kateryna Sokolova believes that Ukrainians in Norway must work hard to integrate into Norwegian society. Photo: Trond Lydersen / news – Maybe it is difficult to find a job, because we are here temporarily. Therefore, employers may wonder whether it is a good idea to spend time and resources on training us, when we may be going home if the war ends, she says. Sokolova believes that many people with children will continue to live in Norway. – It is not enough just to want it. We who want to continue living in Norway must continue to do our best to integrate into Norwegian society, and be useful to the country that has given a lot of help to our homeland, she says. – What do you think Nav says we need more Ukrainians? – It is very good to hear that. Ukrainians have a very high work capacity, so I think we can be useful in contributing to Norway, which has become our second home. – Must have control at the borders Labor and Inclusion Minister Tonje Brenna says she agrees with the NAV chief that Norway needs as many jobs as possible. – The alternative to having a salary to live on is to depend on a benefit or get help in other ways. It is bad, both for the individual who cannot make use of the qualities and talents one may have, but it is also bad for us as a society, because it is much more expensive. Labor and Inclusion Minister Tonje Brenna denies that there is any contradiction between the need for labor and the government’s austerity measures. Photo: William Jobling / news Brenna says there is no contradiction between the NAV chief’s statements about the need for labor and the government’s austerity measures for Ukrainian refugees. Brenna points out that for a period Norway took in far more Ukrainians than our neighboring countries. She is happy that fewer Ukrainians have arrived after Christmas. – There must be a number that can be absorbed, for example in the labor market, so people have a job to go to. There is no contradiction between being concerned that we should have control at the borders and saying that we should have a sustainable level of arrivals, and at the same time saying that we need the people we are going to work with. On the contrary, those things are well connected. Ukrainians with children work more The proportion of Ukrainian refugees who work is well under half of the rest of the population. This despite the fact that figures obtained by news show that there are over 17,000 men of fighting age in Norway. At the same time, the figures are higher than for other refugee groups. It is a finding in the report that perhaps surprises the researchers the most. Ukrainians with children under 18 who have lived for some time in Norway have higher employment rates than Ukrainians without children. No conclusions are drawn in the report, while at the same time it is pointed out that it is far more common for women to work in Ukraine than in countries such as Syria and Afghanistan. – I will not speculate too much as to why, but it is a clear finding, says Holte. Published 13.06.2024, at 13.12
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– Norway needs the Ukrainians – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
