Ukrainian lawmaker Maryana Bezuhlaya has called for the removal of military draft exemptions for all workers across Ukraine, news outlet Strana.ua reported.
Under her proposal, the only people spared from conscription would be Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and government ministers, leaving the rest of the country's civilian workforce subject to call up.
Bezuhlaya, an elected deputy in the Verkhovna Rada, stated that she believed authorities must strip exemptions from everyone. She noted that draft deferrals should also be cancelled for members of parliament, although she argued that a separate procedure should be established for sitting lawmakers to ensure they retain the ability to cast votes on state legislation.
Tighter quotas for critical industries
The proposal follows an earlier decision by the Ukrainian government to tighten the rules governing military deferrals across strategic sectors. Under those updated regulations, the share of draft eligible workers granted exemptions in the defence industrial complex and the fuel and energy sector must not exceed 95 percent of their total workforce, down from the previous limit of 100 percent.
Mobilisation rules during wartime
The Verkhovna Rada is the unicameral national parliament of Ukraine, based in Kyiv, which holds sole legislative authority and oversees government appointments. President Volodymyr Zelensky has served as head of state and supreme commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine since winning election in 2019.
Under Ukrainian martial law, general mobilisation applies to eligible men to support national defence efforts. To keep essential services running, the government established a workplace reservation system, commonly known as bron, allowing state agencies and private enterprises to exempt critical personnel from military service.
The scheme has primarily applied to workers operating electrical grids, municipal utilities, transport systems, and defence manufacturing plants that build and repair equipment. Balancing the staffing requirements of Ukraine's armed forces against the need to sustain domestic industry and tax revenues has prompted continued reviews of which employers and employees qualify for legal deferrals.
