Economic activity of youth in conditions of national challenges: economic stagnation, pandemic, martial law

Abstract

Introduction. Employment for a person is a key issue of life. For young people, it acquires a much more important aspect, because it is young people who form new features of the future labor market. In the process of employment in the labor market, young workers can become a new drop of ideas, changes, they demonstrate their mobility quite easily, at the same time, they often cause concern among employers due to lack of experience or its complete absence or lack of patience, which reduces their competitiveness in front of more experienced competitors. Theoretical and applied problems related to changing the model of youth employment for the sake of economic growth and development in Ukraine need scientific attention. Goal. Determination of youth employment trends, their value orientations and prioritization of modern skills and abilities in the conditions of stagnation of the national economy, pandemic and martial law in Ukraine. Method. The theoretical-methodological toolkit and surveying methods are applied – interviewing young people about their employment experience; statistical – processing and analysis of questionnaire data, as well as employment center materials; graphic and tabular – strengthening the visual presentation of the material and data obtained in the research process; generalization and abstract-logical when formulating conclusions and recommendations. Results. The article examines the problematic issues of the youth labor market, which require priority solutions in the context of modern challenges. A comparison was made in the temporal dimension and the most important personal values, life priorities and goals of young people were singled out, which, together with the priority of modern skills and abilities, are the most in demand on the labor market in the conditions of a pandemic and martial law. The trends of young people's demand for the choice of a profession, which they consider promising and highly paid and which they would like to master in order to achieve success and material well-being, are considered. The importance of the reasons that can prevent youth from getting a job in Ukraine in the received profession in today's conditions has been analyzed and determined. The main sources of job search, which are the most effective for young people, have been established, including Internet resources and personal contacts. The key tasks that need to be solved in the labor market of Ukraine in the medium term in order to form a national model of youth policy are outlined.