Ivan Blažević: Ukrainian doctors wait two years for diploma recognition and work as waiters

Currently, around 20,000 Ukrainians live in Croatia. There were more of them since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, but in the meantime, they either returned to their homes or went to other countries due to the inability to find employment. Those who remained want to have as normal a life as possible during their stay in Croatia, and one of the main conditions for successful integration is to have a job.

Today, a conference titled Private Sector Initiative for the Integration of Refugees from Ukraine was held in Zagreb, organized by partners gathered in Association Svoja, which helps refugees in the processes of education (learning Croatian) and employment. The main partners in this Association are European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), whose primary role is to collect donations, and the main donor is TaiwanBusiness – EBRD Technical Cooperation Fund. There is also Solidarna Foundation, which has been helping Ukrainian refugees since the beginning of the war.

In the introductory part of the conference, Ivan Blažević, director of the Solidarna Association, highlighted some pressing issues that are causing the integration and employment process of Ukrainians in Croatia to not proceed faster, and after the language barrier, the main problem is the lengthy process of diploma recognition, which takes less time in countries like Germany or Poland. – For the recognition of medical diplomas, of which there is a shortage in Croatia, it takes up to two years. Therefore, we have several dozen doctors from Ukraine who are currently working as waiters – said Blažević, emphasizing that Croatian institutions do not follow the attempts to integrate refugees into the labor market. The Croatian Employment Service, he adds, has formed a special team that deals only with this issue. He also mentioned positive examples of our companies that had branches in Ukraine and, at the beginning of the war, brought their workers to Croatia, providing them with accommodation and all necessary means for work. The Solidarna Association has conducted over a thousand hours of Croatian language education for Ukrainians in a year.

Victoria Zinchuk, regional director of the EBRD for Central Europe, emphasized that the bank’s initiative was launched to ensure a decent life for refugees, to help them find jobs and participate in Croatia’s economic development, and she highlighted that the EBRD wants to encourage its clients to join this initiative.

Of the 20,000 refugees, over 85 percent are women with children. Those with small children have very few options, while those with older children who go to school are trying to find jobs. – Croatian society has welcomed Ukrainians well, especially children in school. They have been received with warmth and acceptance, making their mothers happy as well. When they start working, women want to integrate into society and feel good in Croatia compared to some other countries due to the similar language and mentality. Those who previously engaged in entrepreneurship in Ukraine want to do business in Croatia, and we already have about 60 examples of entrepreneurial initiatives, both in construction and hospitality, and many IT professionals have also arrived. For their business opening needs, we have provided them with the services of the city Blue Office where they can get all the information – emphasized Iryna Pronenko, a human resources expert at the Association Svoja. In parallel, based on a Slovak project, training for women in technology sector jobs has also been initiated.

In nine months since the establishment of the Association Svoja, over 200 Ukrainians have been employed in Croatia, mostly in ‘lower’ positions in stores, hospitality establishments, hotels, and most of them work in bakeries.

In Studenac, for example, 24 workers from Ukraine are employed, and Michal Halwa, the chief financial officer of that retail chain, announced an increase in that number. – From our perspective, it is easier to employ Ukrainians than other foreign workers. We do not require diplomas or certificates, and there are no barriers. We are the largest retail network, expanding, growing, and we need workers for both permanent and seasonal jobs. We offer workers from Ukraine the same conditions as for domestic workers, including indefinite contracts – emphasized Halwa. Petra Glasnović, executive director of human resources at Mlinar, agreed that the hiring process is very simple and that they currently employ 27 Ukrainian workers. – We had the fortunate circumstance that before the war in Ukraine began, we worked with the EBRD on a similar inclusion project, how to introduce women over 50 into the labor market, and through that project, we successfully employed over 80 women of that age. We then easily transferred that experience to workers from Ukraine. The different structure of the workforce at Mlinar positively affects teamwork and dynamics, and we must come to terms with the fact that jobs will soon look different. Not everyone will be proficient in the language, but they will have some basic skills for everyday communication with customers – said Glasnović. However, some workers are far overqualified for the jobs they perform. – We have examples of overqualified workers, such as a lawyer working in a bakery. However, these jobs are not less valuable to them. On the contrary, they help them divert their thoughts from the bad things that have happened to them – concluded Petrović.