Sienkevych has reported a brain drain from Mykolaiv City Council to the Regional State Administration due to low salaries

Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych stated that, due to the reduction in salaries, city council staff have already begun leaving their posts and moving, in particular, to the regional military administration. He noted that, despite this, some staff «will have to be made redundant».

He spoke about this in a comment to NikVesti following the city council session held on 27 March.

As is known, the head of the regional military administration, Vitalii Kim, recently stated that the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration plans to cut around 22% of its staff due to a budget deficit. According to him, although the state has allocated more funds than last year, the increase in salaries for public sector workers has led to a shortage of funds, both in the region and in most local authorities. Consequently, they are now planning cuts and reductions in bonuses.

«Let me put it this way: if we look at individual departments and directorates, despite the reduction in funding for capital works and routine maintenance, the scope of their functions remains unchanged. In particular, this applies to the largest department of social protection and the department of administrative services; it is impossible to downsize them, as this would affect the ability to provide services to citizens. But it’s true, we’ll have to,» explained Oleksandr Sienkevych.

Mayor of Mykolaiv Oleksandr Sienkevych. Screenshot from the YouTube channel NikVesti

According to Oleksandr Sienkevych, due to the reduction in salaries, city council employees have already begun moving, in particular, to the regional military administration.

«Moreover, I would like to say that this reduction is already happening of its own accord, as due to a lack of funds and a reduction in salaries compared to last year, people have started resigning and moving, in particular, to the regional military administration. As they are employees of state bodies and are in the civil service, salaries there are higher than at the city council,» added the mayor.

In response to a follow-up question from a journalist at NikVesti regarding the percentage by which the city council needs to be reduced, Oleksandr Sienkevych replied that it was «difficult to estimate».

«No, I cannot give a percentage, as it is difficult to assess. Some will have to be made redundant, whilst others cannot be, as the people of Mykolaiv who receive these services will suffer. In other words, people will be forced to book an appointment at the Administrative Service Centre two months in advance. Especially since we opened these centres with the help of our foreign partners to bring services closer to the people, not to cut staff and leave them looking nice but empty,» replied Oleksandr Sienkevych.

Mayor of Mykolaiv Oleksandr Senkevych. Screenshot from the YouTube channel NikVesti

There is a shortfall in Mykolaiv’s budget. What is known?

Mykolaiv City Council has appealed to the government and parliament to provide an additional grant from the state budget. According to the city’s calculations, its own budget revenue for 2026 covers only 82.5% of actual needs, and the financial shortfall exceeds 1.14 billion hryvnias.

In total, budget revenue for 2026 amounts to 5 billion 546 million hryvnias, whilst total budget expenditure stands at 5 billion 275 million 353 thousand 815 hryvnias.

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Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych emphasised that the 2026 budget is effectively a survival budget and does not cover all the community’s needs. In particular, the Mykolaiv budget lacks funds for the pay rise for teachers initiated by the state.

Councillors also appealed to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Cabinet of Ministers, demanding a pay rise for cultural workers. The document highlights the critically low level of pay in the cultural sector.

Instead, the government has raised the basic salary for cultural workers to 3,470 hryvnias. The Mykolaiv authorities have said they will look for funds in the budget to pay the supplements.

Apart from paying salaries, the city budget also lacks funds for routine and major road repairs, as stated by Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych. For example, the municipal enterprise ELU Avtodorig has received around 80 million hryvnias less than allocated in the budget.

Meanwhile, during a staff meeting on 2 March, Oleksii Savchuk, Director of the City Council’s Capital Construction Department, reported that there is currently no funding for repairs to the admissions ward of City Hospital №3.

«At present, no funding has been allocated for the admissions department of Hospital №3,» he noted.

Meanwhile, during the staff meeting on 2 March, Hennadii Iziumov, director of the municipal enterprise Mykolaivvodokanal, reported that the enterprise requires additional funds for road resurfacing work following the repair of potholes.

«We have over 560 orders for asphalting that have been pending since 2023. I wanted to discuss with you separately the possibility of additional funding to resolve these outstanding issues,» said Gennadii Iziumov.

Subsequently, Mykolaiv Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych stated that the Ministry of Finance would spend up to four months reviewing the state of the city budget to justify the need for additional funding from the state budget. The mayor noted that the city authorities had submitted updated revenue and expenditure estimates to the Ministry of Finance. According to him, budget revenues have increased slightly, in particular thanks to tax payments by residents and the mobilisation of extra-budgetary funds. However, this is insufficient to cover rising expenditure.

Recently, on 26 March, city councillors approved amendments to the city budget and allocated surplus funds.

According to the city council, expenditure has increased by 735.6 million hryvnias through subsidies and surplus funds from 2025 (317 million hryvnias), as well as public investment (300 million hryvnias).

The changes will affect almost all areas of the city:

• education (+201.3 million hryvnias) — additional payments to teachers (state subvention) — 125.3 million hryvnias: meals for primary school pupils and refurbishment of school canteens, support for children with special educational needs;
• housing and communal services (+220.3 million hryvnias);
• support for utility companies (water and heating supply) — 260.2 million hryvnias (taking into account internal reallocations);
• implementation of the HOPE project — 139.7 million hryvnias;
• transport and infrastructure: a loan from the EIB to improve public transport — 135.4 million hryvnias;
• security and civil protection (+22.1 million hryvnias): measures to prevent and respond to emergencies.

District administrations received additional funding for the implementation of local projects:

• Central District: +43.2 million hryvnias;
• Zavodskyi District: +38.1 million hryvnias;
• Korabelnyi District: +35.1 million hryvnias;
• Inhulskyi District: +34.5 million hryvnias.