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Ukraine is considering changes to its system for reserving employees from mobilization amid widespread abuse, although no major changes are expected for critically important enterprises, Prime Minister Sergii Koretskyi said during parliamentary question time.
The government is revising a resolution on employee reservations. Further details will be announced once the updated document is ready, Koretskyi said.
Why the government is reviewing 100% reservations
Koretskyi said allowing some enterprises to reserve 100% of their military-liable employees creates opportunities for manipulation. Companies can expand their staff and reserve additional workers regardless of whether their jobs are essential to the country's functioning.
“This creates opportunities for significant manipulation. If you have a 100% quota, you can increase your staff indefinitely and reserve people, whether they are repair workers or not, whether they are energy workers or not,” the prime minister said.
According to Koretskyi, the practice has become widespread, with tens of thousands of additional reservations being granted each month. The government is considering whether to change the 100% threshold or leave it unchanged.
He stressed the need to distinguish between a company's economic performance and its actual importance to national security and essential services. Meeting salary requirements or having no outstanding tax liabilities does not necessarily mean that an enterprise is critical to the state.
Koretskyi cited the example of a contractor that had been allowed to reserve 100% of its employees because it performed work for Ukrenergo, Ukraine's national electricity transmission operator. An assessment reportedly found that only 20 of the company's 100 employees worked on Ukrenergo-related projects, while the remainder were engaged in ordinary commercial activities.
No radical changes expected for critical enterprises
Koretskyi said there were no grounds for speculation about the final outcome because the government had not yet adopted or announced its decisions.
He acknowledged that the mobilization and reservation systems needed improvement, adding that the General Staff required more personnel.
However, the prime minister sought to reassure businesses that genuinely perform critical functions for the country.
“I can say with a high degree of confidence that there will be no radical changes for these people, these enterprises and these industries,” Koretskyi said.
He urged the public not to draw premature conclusions, promising that the government would communicate the details once the decisions were finalized.
On October 13, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted a resolution concerning the reservation of military-liable employees, but the provisions governing reservation quotas were left for further revision over the following five days.
The defense industry has opposed a reported proposal to reduce its reservation quota from 100% to 85%. According to the Ukrainian Council of Weapons Manufacturers, defense industry employees account for no more than 10% of all reserved workers.
Ukraine's parliamentary ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, has also urged the public not to rush to conclusions, emphasizing that the changes under discussion have not yet become final decisions.
