Interview with Oksana Shmulyar Gréen and Svitlana Odynets

Your study sheds light on the challenges and opportunities for Ukrainians seeking protection in Sweden. What aspects of the reception did the women interviewed perceive as most crucial for their integration into Swedish society?

• We cannot talk about ‘integration’ of Ukrainians in Sweden due to the lack of establishment and integration measures until the summer of 2023 (when the right to SFI became a reality) and the summer of 2024 (with the introduction of establishment measures, higher compensation, etc).
• In a positive and empowering sense, what was most crucial for adaptation to life in Sweden was the ‘kindness and commitment’ conveyed by ordinary Swedes, volunteers and the Ukrainian diaspora.
• Other (non-economic) resources that helped them are the sense of security, agency and willingness to learn new things, the nature, cultural activities (free of charge) and religion, etc.
  
  

The study points to a relatively fast establishment of Ukrainians in the Swedish labour market. What do you think are the main reasons for this success, and what can be done to improve their long-term integration?

• There are several reasons why those seeking protection were able to find jobs in Sweden quickly:
• Those who came to Sweden were predominantly young and of working age
• Most had á high level of education and a job in Ukraine before the war
• Significant proportion had worked abroad before and had contacts and networks
• Employers in Sweden are willing to hire protection seekers from Ukraine and could receive compensation from the Public Employment Service to do so
• The vast majority found work in service occupations, production, construction, etc. with low wages and short-term contracts
• For those seeking protection themselves, finding a job quickly was the only way to create the conditions for a more decent life, as the daily allowance and other supports in Sweden were so low.
• The rapid establishment of Ukrainians in the labour market in Sweden can be considered a success, at least if Sweden is compared to other Nordic countries. However, there are several concerns about this success:
• Many experience a loss of status because the jobs they do in Sweden do not match their competences
• Employment contracts are rarely longer than 6 months to 1 year
• Low wages
• There is discrimination in the workplace and exploitation
• Language development in Swedish is slowed down by the fact that all others who work in low-paid industries are themselves migrants, and often work without a contract
• What needs to be done in the long term for the integration of those seeking protection:
• Let establishment efforts apply to all groups of those seeking protection (those who are able to work but also those who are so-called pensioners, in Ukraine many retire around the age of 60)
• SFI and further education in Swedish is crucial to be able to anchor in society in a meaningful way, therefore language learning should be a priority
• Implement validation of education and training programmes as a matter of urgency
• To prevent lock-in in low-skilled, low-income occupations, labour market interventions should be targeted. Ensure that protection seekers with higher education and the intention to stay in Sweden for a longer period of time can, after validation of their education and with the help of the Swedish Public Employment Service, make individualised further education and career choices. Protection seekers without previously established contact with the labour market should be able to receive further training in shortage occupations at a faster pace.
• Children and young people should be able to study at upper secondary school and university with support from CSN, at least with support from the grant component. Uncertainty about children's future education creates great anxiety for parents who do not dare to make long-term decisions about their own stay in Sweden.
  
  

• While from Ukraine those seeking protection had only basic rights and low daily allowances (which many will continue to have after 1 November 2024), various civil society actors had to cover the important gaps that emerged in their needs: e.g. access to cheaper food and household goods, to language courses, to psychological support, and various support networks, etc.
• State actors should have an ongoing dialogue with various civil society organisations, invite them to exchange experiences, take part in their own research and studies, support their initiatives financially and generally recognise their contribution to the well-being of Ukrainians in Sweden.
  
  

On 1 November, new legislation will enter into force which aims to improve the living conditions of beneficiaries of temporary protection. What do you see as the main improvements and what challenges remain?

• Improvements: 
• More financial resources than before
• Ability to act on their own and to use the digital functionalities in terms of contact with authorities, health care, contact with schools, banks, etc.
• Access to social security number and bank ID make these contacts easier
• Establishment efforts provide a deeper understanding of how Swedish society works and potentially increase trust in the institutions of Swedish society.
  
  

• Challenges:
• Transformation from collective to individual protection: The TPD is a collective protection where the protection rights of the individual are subordinate to the collective protection. All applicants under the Tempo­rary Protec­tion Directive suffer under the same legal framework regardless of their individual reasons for seeking protection. However, the shift to registration in the civil registry foresees that each individual will be treated individually when decisions are made. On the one hand, this implies a shift of responsibility to those seeking protection (e.g. in terms of housing), and on the other hand, there may be conflicts and disagreements in terms of how different family members respond to this change and what resources they need.
• It is still unclear how the EU's Tempo­rary Protec­tion Directive, which is in force until March 2026, and the 5-year civil registration system relate to each other in legal terms.
• Lack of knowledge about changes in legislation within the authorities: Even before the government decision in 2024, there have been gaps in the knowledge of the Swedish authorities about how the Temporary Protection Directive should be applied. As a result, different officials could often give conflicting or even contradictory answers to the same questions. As several of the protection seekers interviewed testify, shortcomings in cooperation between authorities will continue even after 1 July 2024.

• Different municipal approaches: There are many different ways in which different municipalities approach the reception of Ukrainians in Sweden. In Skåne (a region in the south of Sweden), where the latest interviews were conducted, we can identify those municipalities where there is a special ‘spider in the web’ (key coordinator) who keeps regular contact with all protection seekers, and does not just send out information to those who may be perceived impersonally. In these municipalities, individuals seeking protection tend to feel more confident and proactive about their applications for ID, etc. In municipalities without such a coordinator, however, the situation is quite different, and information is often channelled through other migrants' personal experiences and social media.
• Unclear responsibilities regarding housing: how are protection seekers supposed to pay market rents - The Migration Agency and municipal support for housing is coming to a stop and protection seekers' incomes are still very low.
• Better supervision of workplaces that use state support to employ Ukrainian protection seekers should be applied. Other measures must also be put in place to reduce discrimination and exploitation of workers with temporary status.
• Several studies (e.g. HUG, 2024) point to deteriorating mental health among Ukrainian protection seekers, partly due to untreated trauma from the war and partly due to forced migration. During the period of temporary protection and continued uncertainty about their future, many Ukrainians experience problems with low self-esteem, emotional stress and anxiety, burnout, and depression, etc. that have a negative impact on their integration into society. Public health services should be aware of these problems and implement various health promotion measures for this group, based on the methods developed by support organisations.

Photography: Max Kukurudziak via Unsplash.