New Perspectives: Labour Market Integration of Displaced Ukrainian Women

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 triggered both internal displacement and unprecedented international refugee flows. Within the first three months, around 7.2 million people fled abroad. In response, the EU activated the Temporary Protection Directive2 for the first time, granting displaced persons from Ukraine temporary residence rights.

As of March 31, 2025, slightly more than 4.26 million Ukrainians hold temporary protection status in the EU. The largest host countries are Germany (~1.19 million), Poland (~997,000), and the Czech Republic (~365,000), with Austria hosting around 81,225 – making it a medium-sized host country in both absolute and relative terms.

Before the war, migration from Ukraine varied across host countries. Poland has already been a key destination for Ukrainian labour migrants for many years, while Germany and Austria hosted a relatively small Ukrainian diasporas. By 2021, Poland hosted over 650,000 Ukrainians, compared to 83,000 in Germany and 10,000 in Austria. The ratio of newly displaced Ukrainians with temporary protection to pre-war Ukrainian residents is about 1:1.5 in Poland, 1:13.7 in Germany, and 1:8.35 in Austria.

The demographic profile of those displaced from Ukraine differs significantly from previous refugee movements in the 21st century, with a large majority being women. As of October 2024, 45% were adult women, 23% adult men, and 32% were children. Among the women, 55% were aged 35-65.