(non)discrimination of LGBTQI+ people in the workplace and inclusive labor market results of a national survey of the LGBTQI+ community
In 2015, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine voted for the amendment to the
Labor Code of Ukraine that prohibited discrimination of people in the
workplace based on their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. By
2023, there was not a single case in Ukraine submitted to the court in
relation to workplace discrimination based on SOGI. At the same time,
although recent sociological data shows a general improvement in
societal attitudes toward LGBTQ people , LGBTQ people remain one of
the most marginalized minority groups in Ukraine, and the full-scale
invasion has exacerbated their vulnerability. Based on this premise and
on the fact that there has been no research, and no data was collected
on LGBTQ people in the Ukrainian job market. Therefore, the present
report is the first attempt to shed some light on the situation of
Ukrainian LGBTQ people in various sectors of economy. The purpose of
the report was to highlight the main challenges and obstacles that
Ukrainian LGBTQ individuals face in job searches and workplaces.
Designed as a qualitative study and primarily based on in-depth one-toone interviews with LGBTQ Ukrainians, the report has its limitations in
terms of representativeness of the sampling regarding participants’age,
place of residency, and employment sector. Nevertheless, it can serve as
a solid starting point and give a good idea of the issues that need to be
dealt with to make Ukrainian private and public sectors of economy
more inclusive.
Maryna Shevtsova 