Ukrainian female refugees in Czechia after the Russian full-scale invasion: social reproduction of ‘(low) skill’?

Refugees fleeing the Russian-Ukrainian war after receiving temporary protection visas in Czechia, which allowed free access to the labour market, found themselves in an ambiguous position between 'refugees' and 'workers'. The new arrivals were mostly women with above-average education, but for a year or more after their arrival they were still working predominantly in jobs that were described as low-skilled. The aim of the article is to understand under what conditions temporary protection visa holders sought work, what jobs were available to them, and how the broader institutional framework shaped their employment trajectories, particularly in relation to their qualifications. Based on biographical narrative interviews with the temporary protection holders, the article shows that only people who received significant and specific support in the area of social reproduction outside of the general support of the Czech state were able to gain more time, which was a key source of their ability to try to get a job that was more in line with their personal aspirations. The paper contributes to the debate on the conditions under which migrants are able (or unable) to acquire skilled work by highlighting the dynamics of social reproduction of skill.