The international freelance exchange Upwork announced on March 7 the suspension of work in Belarus and the Russian Federation. This process will be completed on May 1st. About it reported platform CEO Hayden Brown.
“Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine has challenged our mission, values and our operational capacity to provide economic opportunity to those who seek it. Upwork suspends work in Russia and Belarus starting today, the restrictions will fully take effect until May 1, 2022, ”the publication says.
Over the next few days, freelancers and clients from Russia and Belarus will no longer be able to register new accounts, enter into new contracts, and will become invisible in searches. Current contracts must be terminated by May 1st.
As Mikhail Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, explained, Upwork’s departure from the Russian Federation means that more than 100 thousand Russian citizens will lose their jobs in IT “because they are silent when their dictator kills the inhabitants of our country.”
“This is a courageous decision by the Upwork team. We are eternally grateful for him.” wrote Fedorov on Telegram.
Upwork noted that they will continue to provide support to Ukrainian freelancers and ordinary citizens.
- A $1 million donation to Direct Relief International is expected to support the people of Ukraine.
- Ukrainian freelancers will be allowed to keep their careers regardless of whether they can work now.
- There will be programs to make it easier for clients to maintain existing employment relationships and provide financial assistance to talented workers from Ukraine.
- The platform team will donate 100,000 US dollars to provide humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.
The transfer of light companies, as they were born in support of Russia through the war with Ukraine
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