Scores of Ukrainian Refugees Struggle to Find Work in US as Local Labor NGOs Overwhelmed – Report

In April 2022, Washington launched the Uniting for Ukraine program, which allows Ukrainians with financial sponsorship to temporarily live and work in the US.

With more than 215,000 Ukrainian refugees reportedly arriving in the US amid the ongoing Russian special military operation in Ukraine, American labor NGOs seem to be unable to effectively cope with the flow of Ukrainians struggling to find work outside their country.

A US media outlet cited Kiev native Viktoria Bolotina, who arrived in Minneapolis, Minnesota a month ago, as saying that the number one priority for her, “to go to work and get a job,” still remains.

According to the outlet, some US labor agencies urged the government to extend the time the refugees could stay to help resolve the problem of providing Ukrainian refugees with jobs.

Right now, Ukrainian citizens and their immediate family members are allowed to come to the US and stay temporarily in a 2-year period of parole, in line with a program endorsed by President Joe Biden.

The US media outlet also referred to the New York City-headquartered non-profit organization Tent Partnership for Refugees, which collaborates with the business community to put refugees to work.

The organization hosted a US business summit back in September, when 45 of America’s leading brands, including Amazon, Hilton, Pfizer and PepsiCo vowed to collectively hire over 22,000 refugees in the US over the next three years. It remains unclear whether Ukrainian refugees were employed by the companies.

April saw the launch of the Uniting for Ukraine program in the US, which stipulates Ukrainian refugees getting the right to work and residence in America for up to two years, according to the US Department of Homeland Security. Applicants are obliged to have a sponsor in the US, who will “agree to provide them with financial support for the duration of their stay in the [country].”

While President Joe Biden pledged protection for 100,000 Ukrainians through the program, the actual number of Ukrainians is expected to depend on the number of willing financial sponsors in the US.