IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/rmobxx/v21y2026i1p67-84.html

Forced or voluntary migrants? Daily and labour market challenges for new Israeli citizens from Ukraine since 2014

Author

Listed:
  • Nonna Kushnirovich
  • Irina Kuznetsova
  • Oksana Mikheieva

Abstract

This research challenges the dichotomy between voluntary and involuntary migration, highlighting the role of pre-departure experiences in everyday life and labour market outcomes in the host country. Focusing on a qualitative study among Ukrainians who immigrated to Israel between 2014 and 2020 and comparing experiences of those who moved from war-torn zones and government-controlled areas, the paper emphasizes the impact of displacement on vulnerabilities. It argues that granting citizenship does not shield repatriates from war-torn territories from precarious employment in Israel. Compared with other repatriates, they face significant challenges due to language barriers, lack of pre-arrival capital, and mental health issues stemming from war and displacement. Immigrants from war-torn zones are initially more disadvantaged than others and, without special support, the effects of their initial disadvantage become cumulative. It calls for more inclusive integration policies that address trauma and provide tailored support, including mental health interventions and professional training. Recognizing the unique needs of these repatriates is crucial for their long-term well-being and successful integration.

Suggested Citation

  • Nonna Kushnirovich & Irina Kuznetsova & Oksana Mikheieva, 2026. "Forced or voluntary migrants? Daily and labour market challenges for new Israeli citizens from Ukraine since 2014," Mobilities, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(1), pages 67-84, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:rmobxx:v:21:y:2026:i:1:p:67-84
    DOI: 10.1080/17450101.2025.2470711
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/17450101.2025.2470711
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/17450101.2025.2470711?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:taf:rmobxx:v:21:y:2026:i:1:p:67-84. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/rmob20 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.