The ongoing crisis in Ukraine has no doubt been at the front of your mind in recent weeks.
As new horrors and tragedies from the conflict are revealed to the world each day, you’re likely one of many people that’s keen to make an active effort in helping the country’s people.
Through events out of their control, these individuals have been displaced from their homes, families, and livelihoods – leaving many without an income stream to support themselves and whomever they might have emigrated with.
The tech industry is one of Ukraine’s leading exports– and as many of its professionals are now scouring for work, we think there’s a great opportunity for tech leaders to help them and, in the process, secure some skilled and knowledgeable employees for their business.
If you’re interested in hiring Ukrainian employees, time is of the essence– although we don’t claim to be experts, we’ve created this resource to give you an idea of the process involved.
Navigating the processes
Onboarding Ukrainian refugees into your company can be complicated, but don’t let it put you off!
One of the main ways that they’ll legally be able to work for you is through the Homes for Ukraine scheme, which is an entryway into the UK that’s been tailormade for those fleeing the crisis.
Through this procedure, they’re able to live and work in the UK for up to three years. While this is great, it’s only a fixed amount of time (unless the government decides to amend it), so you’ll want to factor this into your long-term hiring plans.
In the short-term, like any candidate, you’ll still need to check each individual’s right to work in the country. Outside of Homes for Ukraine, refugees may also approach you and your business under a regular work Visa.
Remote workers
The idea of remote work has probably cropped up a fair amount whilst you’ve been weighing up your options for hiring Ukrainian talent, and it certainly has it’s value in this crisis.
One of the more dedicated channels available for advertising remote work is Remote Ukraine, a free to use platform where you can join 6000+ other users in hiring displaced Ukrainian workers (which can be done from any country!)
Remote working really is a great option if you can offer it – Ukrainian nationals (or anyone for that matter) can work outside of the UK without the need for a Visa, as long as they won’t need to enter the country.
With that said, an obstacle you’re likely to encounter as a growing business is how to pay your international employees.
If you don’t have a company entity set up in the country the employee is located, you can go through a third party to complete payroll transactions and benefits.
Luckily, there’s plenty of popular third party solutions in place for this exact issue, with one of the most acclaimed being Oyster. Tried and tested by several of our scaleup clients with great feedback!
This is a really intuitive piece of SaaS that, among other great HR features, handles all aspects of paying your employees abroad such as local taxes and deductions.
Here are some links to some great resources you can use to help you place Ukrainian refugees into your business:
https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/jobs-board-launched-for-ukrainians-fleeing-russian-invasion/
https://www.jobaidukraine.com/
https://www.gov.uk/offer-work-ukraine
The practical, financial and emotional difficulties of being a refugee are unfathomable. But for the millions of people who have fled Ukraine since Russia invaded, one obstacle may be somewhat easier to tackle in the coming months: Making a living.
Can you help?
