You can’t make ends meet on a salary like that — young staff at the Mykolaiv Local History Museum are resigning after just a few months
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- Alina KvitkoReporter
The Mykolaiv Local History Museum has reported a staffing crisis due to low wages. Photo: NikVesti archiveThe Mykolaiv Regional Local History Museum is struggling to retain young staff due to low salaries.
This was reported by the museum’s acting director, Kateryna Barbaianova, during a meeting of the Mykolaiv Regional Council’s standing committee on science, education, culture, youth and sport , according to NikVesti.
According to her, the museum has repeatedly faced a situation where young specialists come to work there but resign after just a few months.
«We have repeatedly found that young, enthusiastic men and women come to work for us. They work for three or four months, but on a junior research assistant’s salary, it’s impossible to even cover their utility bills,» said Kateryna Barbaianova.
She noted that the problem affects more than just ordinary staff. The official salary of a museum director at pay grade 18 currently stands at 11,119 hryvnias and 30 kopecks.
Vitalii Boichenko, Deputy Head of the Department of Culture, Nationalities and Religions at the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration, noted that pay levels in the sector remain critically low.
«A cleaner and a museum employee engaged in research work receive exactly the same salary,» he said.
According to the official, the government has already adopted a resolution on revising the salaries of cultural workers. However, the document does not provide for any additional funding.
«Regional military administrations and local authorities have been advised either to find additional funds to increase salaries or to optimise the structure of institutions and staff numbers,» explained Vitalii Boichenko.
At the same time, he added that the Department of Culture submits proposals to the central government every year regarding pay rises for cultural workers, but these have yet to yield any tangible results.
Yevhen Horburov, chair of the relevant parliamentary committee, proposed finding ways to attract young specialists to work in the museum. In particular, he advocated for collaboration with higher education institutions to channel graduates of cultural studies programmes to the museum with the prospect of future employment.
«We need to consider the possibility of sending graduates specialising in the cultural sector here. Otherwise, we simply won’t get out of this situation,» the MP emphasised.
Yevhen Horburov also called on museum staff to draft a new appeal to the government regarding a review of the pay system for cultural workers, in order to draw attention to the issue at national level.
As is well known, in 2025, city councillors appealed to the government and parliament demanding a pay rise for cultural workers. They noted that in 2025 the minimum wage stood at 8,000 hryvnias, yet the salaries of many cultural workers remain below this level.
This material was produced within the REACH – Media Partnerships for Accountability and Trust project, implemented by International Media Support (IMS) and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. The content reflects the views of the authors and not necessarily those of the Danish government. Denmark’s support strengthens civil society and independent media in Ukraine, including in Mykolaiv.