WAR IMPACT ASSESSMENT ON THE STATE OF REGIONAL LABOUR MARKETS IN UKRAINE

The aim of the article is to assess the impact of the war on regional labour markets. Methodology. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study are the works of classical and modern economic science on the development of the labour market, employment and unemployment, including in the context of the crisis. The monographic method was used to highlight the views of scholars on the problem under study. In the course of the research, the authors used general scientific (analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, analytical grouping) and special (abstraction, modelling, benchmarking studies, etc.) methods of studying economic phenomena and processes. Data from the State Statistics Service of the Regions of Ukraine for 2021-2023 were used for the assessment. Results. The article provides a comparative analysis of the situation on the labour market for people with higher education in two oblasts of Ukraine – Zaporizhzhia and Khmelnytskyi. The main characteristics studied were the number of vacancies, unemployed, their share in the overall structure of employment and unemployment in the region, and the level of remuneration. The paper establishes that the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine has had a negative impact on the functioning of the labour market of Ukraine in general and its regional segments in particular. However, this impact was not catastrophic, as evidenced by the situation on the labour market in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, which is mostly occupied. In Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the war resulted in changes in the supply and demand for specialists with higher education, and a reduction in their salaries. This can be explained both by the displacement of relevant specialists and by businesses that contributed to the improvement of the employment situation in the region. The analysis has shown that there is potential to overcome labour market imbalances in the context of people with higher education. Practical significance. The findings have practical and political implications. The results of the analysis can be used to develop the main directions of the state regional policy to overcome the negative impact on the labour market of people with higher education in the conditions of war and taking into account the needs of post-war recovery of the country. Value / Originality. The distinctive feature of this study is its comparative analysis of the impact of the war on the labour market of individuals with higher education in regions that have experienced markedly disparate circumstances since the onset of the full-scale invasion. These include Zaporizhzhia Oblast, which is situated along the frontline and has been partially occupied, and Khmelnytskyi Oblast, which is situated at a considerable distance from the contact line. The analysis has shown that there is a potential to overcome labour market imbalances in the context of people with higher education both during the war and at the stage of post-war reconstruction.