† Determined by national law or regulation as hazardous and, as such, relevant to Article 3(d) of ILO C. 182.
‡ Child labor understood as the worst forms of child labor per se under Article 3(a)–(c) of ILO C. 182.

Children at Higher Risk

Children in Ukraine face increased social, economic, and political challenges, which can make them more vulnerable to exploitation because of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022. The increased vulnerability is most pronounced in the country’s Russia-occupied areas and areas of active conflict. Out of Ukraine’s 7.5 million children, 4.8 million have been forced to flee, with 2 million having fled abroad and 2.8 million displaced internally. Refugee and internally displaced children (particularly unaccompanied children), and children in Russia-occupied territory are especially vulnerable to exploitation in the worst forms of child labor. In addition, children with disabilities, children from Roma or other minority groups, children forcibly transferred to Russia, and homeless and orphaned children, especially those living in state-run institutions, are at risk of human trafficking, including sexual and labor trafficking. Russian occupying authorities and proxy groups backed by Russia continued to recruit children, train them in weapons use, and organize them into reserve militia battalions at militant-run camps and at school programs located in territory occupied or controlled by Russia, and in some cases, continued to illegally transfer them out of Ukraine to camps in Russia. It is impossible to monitor these camps or ensure that the children in them are not exploited now or in the future. In addition, Russian armed forces continued to use Ukrainian children as human shields in active conflict.

Barriers to Education Access

Education continued to be disrupted for more than 6.7 million Ukrainian children, particularly for those in the active conflict areas, due to the extensive damage and destruction of schools as a result of Russia's ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Ukrainian government continued to provide distance and in-person learning, with half of the children in Ukraine attending in-person classes and the other half attending either a combination of in-person and online classes or only online classes, providing for over 95 percent of children in Ukraine attending school. A lack of electricity and internet due to Russia's deliberate targeting of electricity and telecommunications infrastructure has further disrupted access to education. Some children with special needs, children from poor families, and displaced children could not follow online classes because they lacked computer equipment or internet access. Additionally, some Roma children lack birth registration, impeding their access to education. In Russia-occupied areas, occupying authorities imposed the Russian curriculum and language of instruction in schools, to include military training and war propaganda, and prevented Ukrainian children from receiving education in their native language. Ukrainian refugee children residing in several host countries in Europe had low enrollment rates in local education systems due to language barriers, difficulty accessing schools, and expectations of returning to Ukraine. While these children are likely attending school via the Ukrainian online learning platform, there is no available data to confirm their attendance.

‡ Age calculated based on available information

In 2023, the government adopted the Law On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Simplifying Access to Free Legal Aid. This law guarantees equal access for all children to free legal aid necessary to ensure the protection of their rights. It also expands the right to free secondary legal services to all human trafficking victims, including representation of victims’ interests in courts, other state bodies, and local government.

As the minimum age for work of age 16 is lower than the compulsory education age of 17, children may be encouraged to leave school before the completion of compulsory education. Furthermore, the Ministry of Health Order No. 46 does not prohibit children between the ages of 14 and 16 from engaging in hazardous work as part of a vocational training program, which is not in compliance with international standards. Although the law specifies that children in these training programs may be onsite for no more than 4 hours and must remain in strict compliance with applicable safety norms and rules and regulations on labor protection, this is not in compliance with international standards. Ukraine does not sufficiently prohibit the commercial sexual exploitation of children because no law criminalizes the users (clients) of commercial sex involving children.

From June to November 2023, 803 labor inspectors conducted 80 unannounced worksite inspections, finding 3 child labor violations. From January through November 2023, the government also conducted 67 investigations into suspected cases of the worst forms of child labor, initiated 33 prosecutions, indicted 3 persons, and convicted 2 perpetrators.

In early 2022, Ukraine issued Order No. 303, which prohibits labor inspectors from conducting routine or targeted inspections while martial law is in force. In addition, while the SLS resumed unannounced labor inspections in 2023, it was only able to conduct inspections if they met three specific criteria: (1) informal employment, (2) legality of employment contracts suspension and termination, and (3) observance of wartime labor regulations surrounding schedules, paid leave, and other contractual issues. These limitations on inspections may leave potential violations of child labor laws and other labor abuses undetected in workplaces.

† Policy was approved during the reporting period.

For information about USDOL’s projects to address child labor around the world, visit https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/ilab-project-page-search
† Program is funded by the Government of Ukraine.

Download the 2023 Bibliography