DESIRED EMPLOYMENT
It’s interesting that an essential majority of the Ukrainian respondents prefers self-employment and own business (73%). It’s not strange because in Ukrainian society for a long time exists a trend to self-employment, even more, modern realities require enough mobility that push young people to move towards freelance work. But the answers to the next questions demonstrate that this intention remains on the idea level and looks rather socially desired. In the EU, unlike Ukraine, youth mostly pursuits to work an employee. Maybe it depends on high taxes on the business, maybe because of good conditions for employees, legislative and social security, really active trade unions, compliance of contracts and agreements, mostly official employment, less part of the shadow sector of economics. But maybe their desire of independence and freedom in decision-making are less than the Ukrainian youth has.
In the EU youth does not pursuit to work as self-employed, because it really creates more risks for guarateed job. So the trend of this kind of employment falls down. Important that namely among self-employed in the EU are twice more people under the threat of poverty or social isolation than among employees. In 2021, almost a quarter of all self-employed in the EU was at risk of poverty and social isolation. Comparing with the year before and looking at the activity status, it was the only category who has felt a worsening of the situation with poverty. First of all, these are the results of pandemic. Moreover, in dynamics the level of self-employment is decreasing, and in 2021 it was the lowest – 13,1%. Gradually the EU moves towards hired work, not self-employment.
In the EU, as in Ukraine, of self-employment pursuit the youngest respondents. But if in the EU young women more than men want to be an employee, in Ukraine this difference is abscent. A difference between youth in the cities and villages is not essential – in the cities only on 5% more people want to be an employee that could be connected with wider possibilities for finding the better paid job. Wealthy youth is more oriented to self-employment because they have more financial resources for potential investitions into the own business. The essentially less part of unworking youth wants to be self-employed, maybe because they don’t think their experience is enough, are not confident in own capacity to find a job at all or don’t want to work.
For the Ukrainians who chose a job in the company the most important is regular, stable income — this need is a dright sign of instability of modern life. On the second place is not enough finances and resources to be self-employed, inconfidence in own forces. 38% need fixed working hours, 36% - additional knowledges, capabilities, skills. From the most frequently recalled reasons not to risk with self-employment youth tells about additional knowledges, maybe older colleagues support. While they almost are not scared of investors scepticism. For European youth regular, stable income is also important, but for less percent of the respondents. For them essentially more important is job security and access to social protection, because social programs in Europe are better developed than in Ukraine. Less important are a lack of finances and fixed working hours. They more than their Ukrainian peers are afraid that investors don’t take young people seriously.
For Ukrainian youth maximum motivating factors in pursuit to self-employment is, first of all, personal enjoy from the idea embodiment. So, inspite of hard economic state in Ukraine, the young people are oriented to their own interests and the enjoy from work. On the second place better income and independence, freedom. These values are very important for young people because the task of young age is to divide, create own social environment, learn to understand their own needs. That’s why orientation to family is less actual.
Personal enjoy from the ideas fulfillment in life interests Europeans almost twice less, like a better income, probably because in Ukraine possibilities of income are less limited: here you can be very poor or rapidly grow reach. Also less expressed a desire to be useful to the society. But they are almost twice more interested in the chance to get quick cash, possibility to use the business-possibilities and influence of family or friends. t’s interesting that the younger group is greatly more oriented to quick income. It may be due to the fact that the category aged 15-18 is almost not familiar with professional activity and has some romantisized ideas about enterpreneurship. The older is young Ukrainian, the more oriented to better income and benefit to society – in them appears a value of social inclision into the society development.
The wealthier is a young man, the more he sees in entrepreneurship as an enjoy from the embodiment of an idea in life, because a higher level of life gives possibility to know different kinds of rest and leisure, more options for development, to feel more secured financially and more free and brave in decision-making. The lower a level of life, the more youth sees in entrepreneurship possibility to be independant and in the same time useful for society. The working or studying youth more perceives self-employmemt as a possibility of an idea fulfillment. The working people also think about better income prospects. Those who are studying are also oriented to freedom and independance, the unworking youth sees in entrepreneurship an exit in situation if they will not find a job.
SETTING UP A BUSINESS
Only a third part of the respondents who was interested in the own business have taken some steps to set it up. It applies to youth in Ukraine and in the EU. Detail analysis demonstrates that Ukrainian young men are more active in real steps to setting up a business than women. Greatly more towards self-employment moves working Ukrainian youth: namely they take more active steps to start a business because any work and employment is an experience. Young people who is studying did not start anything yet. In Ukraine the main goal of youth is to move towards their own interests and passions (63%). So we see that in their pursuits youth steps away from perception of job exclusively as an activity to earn money, from understanding an employee as «one of the system cogs». From the point of view of actual trends in professional orientation this move corresponds with moddern tendencies, because namely our interests are capable to very effectively motivate to develop and do the work with pleasure.
Also important is to support a region or country (39%), that corresponds with war time, growth of patriotism in society, strengthening of social connestions. In the EU greatly less expressed perception of the own business as possibility to follow own passions and as a mode to support a country. Looks like Europeans perception of the own business is other than ours, not with such accent on interest and selfexpression, for them this is less about self-realization and patriotism. But importance of involving employees to decision-making twice more than we have, though is not included in the top of goals – collegiality of decision is more important.
The biggest part of Ukrainian youth wants to do business in the sector of trade, IT, or online-commerce. Also actual are culture and design, tourism. Manufacturing — on the 5th place with only 7%. The younger people more inclined towards IT and online-commerce, youth of older age groups – towards trade, design, manufacturing. Design is the most attractive to unworking youth. Less interesting is education, scientific research, engineering, which in Ukraine do not look like profitable and mainly are conducted in non-commercial mode on account of the strictly limited state financing. Even less attractive look marketing, business support, financial service.
An interest to the commerce and retail in Ukraine is twice higher than in the EU. Also almost twice higher an interest to manufacturing. In its turn Europeans are more interested in setting a business in sectors of marketing, PR, advertisement, education, scientific research, consulting. Maybe the reason lays in orientation of the EU in small business not to manufacturing and agriculture, but to the sector of intellectual service. In the question of initial funding Ukrainian youth relies mostly on itself, on the own savings. Less than a third part – on salary and banks. Other possibilities to engage initial funding look less real. The question remains how young people accumulated the own savings – what do they understand under it. Maybe these are the family or parents savings. Unworking youth will search support in the public institutions, working — relies on the own savings and salsry. Ukrainians are more ready to rely on their own savings and salary compared with Europeans. Europeans more rely on banks, state institutions, crowfunding, microfinance credits. So if our youth is oriented mostly to itself and own resources, Europeans are more ready to go for the help to others.
THE IMAGE OF BUSINESSMEN
Ukrainian youth describe an image of businessman firstly as a brave, ambitious man, it’s about personal qualities of the image. A rational (active) part — this is a man who creates new products, services, and jobs. The respondents associate businessmen with positive features, mostly rejecting the negative ones. It’s not strange because the majority of youth aims to entrepreneurship and somewhat idealizes this type of work. Europeans more often than Ukrainians denoted negative features of businessmen, such as «think only about profit», «use the work of other people», «reckless». While Ukrainians more often accented on the posinive features, such as bravery, ambitiousness, creation of new. It looks like we deal with differrent conceptions of a businessman on the cultural level, cause in Ukraine the enrepreneurship is idealized and even romantisized, when in the EU vice versa is less attractive. Because in Ukraine entrepreneuership is imagined helpful to realize itself and be successful in unsteady, crisis world, while the EU youth has hiring work as priority, cause it provides stability and social protection.
Youth from the low-income group deffer by their notions, standing in the first place creation of products and services, for them to make the world better is also important, that is somewhat idealistic (inconcrete) notion about businessmen. Those who has better income talk more about features and properties (brave, ambitious) and concrete action: new jobs creation. Those who want to be an employee more often imagine businessmen as new jobs creators (for which they likely will apply). Also for employees the businessman is more a man oriented to profit, and besides in negative context (think only about profit). Those who is oriented to the own business have more attractive image of businessman who beside other things want to make the world better.
IDEA OF THE COMPANY
Ukrainian youth in general is more meticulous to the emploer conditions. For us greatly more important high salary and benefits, life-work balance, financial stability and career growth. The social goals, environment and involving of employees in decision-making are equally important in Ukraine and the EU. Women in general are more meticulous to the employer — all featutes are more important for them than for men, especially in the questions of environment and social goals. Because women are more social oriented and careful. Probably this is connected with gender stereotypes that direct women towards the social interests. Besides these are impotant features namely of the company, so the question is to imagine itself an employee in this company.
Younger category by some parameters essentially differs from the older one, especially by the career development and social goals. For the group aged 15-18 років career growth is not so important – from time of millenials generation its value become lower, such as a value of salary. In its turn a value of the social projects and environment for them is higher because it more correlates with values and culture in which they are growing up. And maybe it will be saved in older age. For all almost equally important are a financial stability, life-work balance and involving of employees into the decision-making.
Working youth gives a higher value to a salary, stability, and career development because they have started the career and look at the work and employment from position of experience, not idealized notions. At the same time a life-work balance is equally important to all categories of employment, as involving of employees in decision-making. So these indicators are resistant to impact of different factors (employment, gender, age).
ENTREPRENEURIAL FEATURES
The majority of entrepreneurrial features in Ukrainian youth self-asteem are in the high level. Exclusion is agressive competition, to which the majority has a negative atttitude possible because of «agressiveness». It also corresponds with businessman image formed among Ukrainian young peoplie: brave, ambitious, novators, create new jobs. So in sum it determines a high interestto be an entrepreneur – attractive image which allows to strengthen self-esteem and build an attractive professional I-image.
Online-survey was conducted on the platform Rating Online. The report is prerared by the experts Tetiana Skrypchenko, Hanna Chatchenko under the guidance of director of the Rating Lab research laboratory, doctor of psychological sciences, professor Marianna Tkalych. The survey was conducted by Eurobarometer. The survey was done by order of the European Comission, the Directorate-Generale for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. Method of the survey: CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interviewing — online-interview, using computer) with apply of Ipsos panel and network of their partners. Date of the conduction: 10–20 October, 2022.