Reservation rules are changing: enterprise criticality criteria will be reviewed within 10 days

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine changed the rules for reserving employees liable for military service at its meeting on October 23. The government clarified the definition of critically important enterprises, launched a review of the criteria for granting this status, and established a new body to coordinate reservations. According to me.gov.ua.

As explained by the Ministry of Economy and Environment of Ukraine, the decisions are intended to balance the needs of the Defense Forces with the stable operation of the economy, critical infrastructure, and businesses that provide for the population’s essential needs.

Central executive authorities and regional military administrations have been given 10 days after the changes take effect to review sectoral and regional criticality criteria in line with the new requirements. The updated criteria will need to be approved by the Coordination Center for Organizing Reservations.

At the same time, the review of the criteria will not trigger an automatic inspection of all enterprises and does not mean a blanket revocation of their status. If an enterprise was granted critically important status under criteria that remain unchanged after the review, it will retain that status.

The Coordination Center will operate under the Cabinet of Ministers as a temporary advisory body. It will be co-chaired by the deputy ministers of economy and environment, and of defense.

Representatives of government agencies responsible for the following areas will take part in the center’s work:

• the economy;
• defense;
• security;
• humanitarian policy;
• critical infrastructure.

The new body’s main powers will include:

• approving sectoral and regional criticality criteria;
• considering requests from government agencies to recognize enterprises as critically important;
• preparing recommendations to revoke this status when there are grounds to do so, including grounds raised by law enforcement agencies;
• approving an increase in reservation quotas above 50%.

The center will have up to one month to consider requests from government agencies. If a matter requires urgent resolution, recommendations must be issued no later than seven working days after the request is received.

Authorized government agencies will continue to make the final decisions on recognizing enterprises as critically important. Central executive authorities and regional military administrations will consider the center’s recommendations.

For enterprises in the fuel and energy sector and the defense industrial complex, the reservation quota has been increased to 95% of employees liable for military service. Employees directly responsible for production processes, fulfilling defense contracts, and carrying out operational, repair, and emergency recovery work must be reserved in full.

The management of each enterprise will independently decide whom to reserve within the established limit. The ministry explained that the restrictions primarily apply to auxiliary and support staff.

Employees who have a deferment from mobilization on other grounds are also included when calculating the maximum share of reserved employees. This includes, in particular, parents of many children and guardians.

The main principle remains unchanged: reservations must keep at enterprises the employees who are essential to performing functions that are critically important to the state.

Previously, we wrote:

• Mobilization reservations to change: even energy and defense industries will no longer have an unconditional 100%
• Mykolaivoblteploenergo could lose 120 employees: stable heating in Mykolaiv at risk
• Reservation quotas may be cut: to 85% for defense and energy, and to 60% for utility workers
• “Hunting season on farmers is open”: agrarian warns of mobilization threat to small farms
• Cabinet changes reservation rules for critically important enterprises