{"id":489,"date":"2024-12-18T13:13:31","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T13:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/?page_id=489"},"modified":"2024-12-23T15:12:38","modified_gmt":"2024-12-23T15:12:38","slug":"aiding-ukrainians-helped-solving-staff-shortages","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/?page_id=489","title":{"rendered":"Aiding Ukrainians Helped Solving Staff Shortages"},"content":{"rendered":"\n


Ieva Jagminien\u0117, the director of the private kindergarten chain Abadel\u0117 <\/a>in Vilnius, tells that she employed as many as nine foreigners in her kindergarten last year. Few of them have already returned back to their homeland, and other Ukrainians were hired to replace them. All of them were refugees who have arrived in Lithuania since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Jagminien\u0117 emphasizes that employing Ukrainians helped both the newcomers and the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the United Nations, since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, around nine million Ukrainians have fled to neighboring countries, where they have received temporary shelter and material assistance. Over 79,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Lithuania. Most of the refugees are women, who started looking for work immediately after accommodating their children in schools and kindergartens. It is not easy to arrive in a foreign country with no connections and often without a foreign language, but socially responsible entrepreneurs in Lithuania have extended a helping hand to the refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Abadel\u0117<\/a> in Lithuania, Vilnius<\/div>\n\n\n\n
The director of Abadel\u0117 <\/a>says that they have employed nine Ukrainians in their kindergartens in Vilnius. Seven women worked as assistant teachers and one as an assistant to cook. An elderly man was employed as a driver. \u201cSince the beginning of the war, we have been helping Ukrainians as much as we can. Some of the women from Ukraine have been working in our kindergarten for half a year. I would like to point out that their employment has not been a one-way aid. The Ukrainians have helped us to solve our staff shortage,\u201d Jagminien\u0117 remarks.<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Critical Staff Shortages<\/h2>\n\n\n
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According to the Lithuanian Public Employment Service<\/a>, 27,4 thousand of Ukrainians have been employed in our country since the start of the war in Ukraine. Ukrainian war refugees work in all Lithuanian municipalities; almost one out of three (8,7 thousand or 31,7%) works in Vilnius. Currently, Lithuanian employers are offering another 2,000 jobs to Ukrainians, in Vilnius city – 772, in Vilnius district \u2013 201 respectively. <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Like many companies, Abadel\u0117 <\/a>also faced a staff shortage, so the arrival of Ukrainians has at least temporarily helped to solve this problem. It is true that many Ukrainians are planning to return to their homeland as soon as the war is over. Jagminien\u0117 says that such longing is easy to understand. \u201cTherefore, we can say that we have only found a temporary solution to the staff shortage. So far, we are very satisfied. The Ukrainians have joined the team quite fast and have adapted to the working and living conditions. They are doing quality work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Overcoming the Language Barrier<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Most Ukrainians who come to Lithuania speak only their mother tongue or Russian. According to the Lithuanian Statistics Department, Lithuanians born after 1986 have almost no knowledge of Russian (having mastered English, French, German or other languages). However, it is not a problem. Abadel\u0117 <\/a>kindergartens are dedicated to competent care and quality early childhood education for the youngest children (8 months+). Since the foundation of the company, it has paid special attention to working with the youngest children, many of whom cannot yet speak. Ukrainian women working as teacher\u2019s aides are more involved in physical tasks: washing and changing nappies, feeding or helping children to eat on their own, changing clothes, taking them outside. Jagminien\u0117 notes that some of the children in the kindergartens come from mixed families, so they understand Russian or English. \u201cAll our staff, including the Ukrainians, speak at least one of these languages,\u201d the director observes. \u201cMoreover, within six months, many of the workers who came from Ukraine have learned to speak Lithuanian.\u201d Jagminien\u0117 appreciates their sincere effort to communicate.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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A Reminder of Values<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

When asked about the benefits of employing foreigners, Abadel\u0117 <\/a>director emphasizes the broadening of horizons and values. \u201cWorking together with foreigners teaches us to adapt, to get out of our comfort zone, to put more effort into communicating and getting to know another culture; it also encourages remembering basic values,\u201d she says.<\/div>\n\n\n\n


The teachers who work with the Ukrainians have noted that interacting with them helps them to re-evaluate the things that they take for granted, such as freedom, peace, and the native land. Jagminien\u0117 remarks that Lithuanians are often inclined to grumble and complain. \u201cBut the experience of the Ukrainians has united us and encouraged our patriotism,\u201d she says. \u201cWe begin to think about how we would pull together as a team and fight for our freedom if a similar situation happened in Lithuania.\u201d The director of Abadel\u0117 <\/a>is pleased to see that the Ukrainians are in a much better emotional and psychological state than when they first arrived. She says that working with toddlers is very responsible and physically tiring, but at the same time, it helps to take their minds off everyday events back home. When working, women feel better and freer.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ieva Jagminien\u0117, the director of the private kindergarten chain Abadel\u0117 in Vilnius, tells that she employed as many as nine foreigners in her kindergarten last year. Few of them have already returned back to their homeland, and other Ukrainians were hired to replace them. All of them were refugees who have arrived in Lithuania since … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-489","page","type-page","status-publish"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=489"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":842,"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/489\/revisions\/842"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/prosper-bsr.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}