The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has taken the first step towards a major reform of the State Service of Ukraine on Labor Issues (DST). The government has approved a resolution that radically changes the structure of the agency's powers: some functions are transferred to other bodies, while the service is assigned new socially significant tasks.

Eliminating Duplication: What is Leaving the DST's Jurisdiction

The main goal of the updates is to eliminate the overlap of powers with other central executive bodies and make the inspection's work more transparent. Functions that previously created an administrative burden and did not correspond to the new working model are being removed from the DST's sphere of responsibility.

The service will no longer deal with issues related to:

  • High-risk objects;
  • The functioning of the natural gas market;
  • Control over advertising of employment services;
  • Registration of technological transport vehicles.

Also, complex technical expertises are being removed from the service's jurisdiction, including inspections in the field of handling explosives, safety of mining operations, technical inspection of high-risk equipment, and expertise of design documentation.

New Priorities: Rights Protection and Digitalization

Instead of technical control, the DST is receiving new powers aimed at social protection and support for employers. In particular, the service will take over the control of compliance with norms and quotas for the employment of persons with disabilities.

In addition, the inspection will participate in the assessment of enterprises for state support and compensate employers for expenses on creating accessible and safe working conditions.

Daria Marchak, Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, emphasized that the reform should ensure the human-centricity of the inspection's work for both employers and employees.

Digital Future and European Standards

A separate direction of the reform will be digitalization. There are plans for a gradual transfer of key procedures to electronic format, which should simplify the interaction of citizens and businesses with the state.

In the end, the government expects to create a modern institution with a clear distribution of powers, a risk-oriented approach to inspections, and digital services that correspond to the practices of European Union countries. The Ministry of Economy has already begun preparing changes to subordinate acts to implement the updated powers.