Working During Air Raid Alerts: Prepare Your Shelter and Documents
Businesses often continue to operate during air. Objectively speaking, periods without alerts are becoming increasingly scarce. Let us look at how employers can protect themselves from potential issues through proper documentation, as well as which course of action may be acceptable in different situations.raid alerts
As a reminder, Resolution No. 1092 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated September 4, 2026, which was amended just two weeks later, establishes different procedures during an air raid alert depending on the threat level. Two threat levels have been introduced: yellow, indicating a threat of individual UAV attacks, and red, indicating a missile threat, a combined missile and drone threat, or a mass drone attack. Accordingly, the yellow level allows work to continue provided certain conditions are met, whereas the red level requires work to stop immediately and all persons present to proceed to a shelter. This means that the time has come to revise internal processes and documents. The requirements apply to all business entities regardless of their form of ownership.
Yellow Threat Level
It is permitted to continue operations provided that a temporary or permanent shelter is available within the premises, building, structure, or on the territory for employees and visitors. Therefore, if an enterprise has its own permanent shelters or properly equipped temporary protective structures, it may continue operating as usual, provided that such shelters are freely accessible to employees and customers. Not all shops, offices, and other facilities have shelters; however, this does not mean that they cannot continue operating. They may do so provided that the employer has agreed this with the workforce. It should be noted that the procedure for obtaining such agreement is not prescribed by the applicable legislation. However, many decisions affecting employees are adopted at meetings of the workforce.
In order to establish the procedure for continuing operations, a meeting of the workforce should be held at which such procedure is determined and documented in the minutes of the meeting. Based on those minutes, the company head should then issue the relevant order and ensure that all employees who may be present at the workplace during an air raid alert acknowledge it by signing it. To avoid any issues in the future, it is advisable to record in the minutes the employer's notification that shelters are currently unavailable, specify the conditions under which continued operations are proposed, and set out the procedure to be followed by employees when an alert is declared. This information should be put to a vote rather than merely communicated to the participants of the meeting; accordingly, the voting results should be recorded in the minutes.
It should be taken into account that, even where the workforce has agreed to continue working without a shelter, operations may continue during a yellow threat level for no longer than three months from the date on which the Resolution entered into force, that is, until December 18, 2026. In the meantime, a way must be found to set up a shelter. As regards visitors, they may remain on the premises of facilities that do not have shelters at their own discretion, as this is a voluntary decision on their part.
Red Threat Level
A red threat level indicates an elevated danger. In the event of this threat level, the standard safety protocol remains in effect: all shops, offices, shopping centres, pharmacies, enterprises, and other facilities must immediately suspend customer service activities. Equipment should be shut down where possible, electrical devices should be disconnected from the power supply, and employees and visitors should be directed in an orderly manner to the nearest shelter. The person responsible at the enterprise is required to notify all persons present of the red threat level by means of a public-address system, verbally, or through work-related chat channels. The actions of employees, management, and responsible persons should also be documented. A clear action plan should be set out in an order issued by the enterprise. In particular, the order should specify when employees must stop work, how the responsible person is to notify employees of the red threat level and ensure unimpeded access to the shelter for employees and visitors, which route employees and visitors must immediately follow to reach the designated shelter, and the procedure for resuming operations following receipt of the all-clear notification after the air raid alert has been cancelled.
Natalia Shcherbak,
Accounting and Tax Consultant