Unemployed: Wagner Mercenaries Struggle to Find Work After Returning From Ukraine War — 'You'd Better Look for Another Place'
Wagner mercenaries are struggling to find work in Russia as they return from the war in Ukraine.
Sept. 18 2023, Published 5:00 p.m. ET
Wagner mercenaries are reportedly struggling to find work in Russia as they return from the war in Ukraine, RadarOnline.com has learned.
The ex-fighters from the private military company recently started to share their stories on online forums and many revealed that they had been denied work opportunities after returning home.
Many of the returning Wagner mercenaries were forced to take low-paid jobs as taxi drivers, construction workers, and doormen.
According to Daily Star, many of the returning Wagner mercenaries were forced to take low-paid jobs as taxi drivers, construction workers, and doormen.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Wagner actively recruited individuals from Russian prisons and promised pardons if the recruited convicts completed a six-month tour in Ukraine.
However, despite their reported contributions and initial promises of a fresh start, the ex-mercenaries have been excluded from employment opportunities.
The mutiny led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the late founder of Wagner, against Russia's military establishment in June did not result in any charges against the PMC members.
The mutiny led by Yevgeny Prigozhin against Russia's military establishment in June did not result in any charges against the PMC members.
After the mutiny, Moscow withdrew Wagner from Ukraine. Prigozhin died in a plane crash believed to have been orchestrated by Vladimir Putin in August.
Still, the former mercenaries are reportedly “finding it difficult” to secure normal jobs.
An independent Russian news outlet, Mozhem Obyasnit, reported on Telegram that the ex-fighters are being denied employment opportunities despite their service.
One woman from the Tyumen region revealed that her husband was unable to find work in security and had resorted to work as an unlicensed taxi driver.
Wagner actively recruited individuals from Russian prisons and promised pardons if the recruited convicts completed a six-month tour in Ukraine.
A job agency recruiting for Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport stated that it had to reject candidates due to pressure from Russia's main intelligence service, the FSB.
"They said you'd better look for another place," the mother of one former Wagner fighter explained. "They didn't even take an application."
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Even a franchisee of the Burger King fast-food chain – which defied the U.S. parent company's order to shut down following sanctions resulting from the war in Ukraine – reportedly refused to hire ex-Wagner fighters.
"We still have couriers,” an agency that handles recruitment for the Russia Burger King franchise said. “Maybe they'll hire a courier."
Many of the returning Wagner mercenaries can't even land a job at Russian Burger King.
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In one shared online chat, a relative of an ex-mercenary expressed disappointment in the authorities and claimed that Putin’s previous promises of a “clean slate” had been broken.
As RadarOnline.com reported, the majority of the Wagner mercenaries hired by Prigozhin before his suspected assassination last month were convicted criminals recruited from Russian prisons across the country.
The surprising move was first revealed in July 2022 after Putin’s military suffered a devastating loss of troops after invading Ukraine that February.
“The fighting has inflicted heavy casualties on the group,” U.K. Minister of Defense Ben Wallace said at the time. “Wagner is lowering recruitment standards, hiring convicts and formerly blacklisted individuals while very limited training is available to new recruits.”
“This will highly likely impact the future operational effectiveness of the group and will reduce its value as a prop to the regular Russian forces,” he added.
The Wagner fighters were ultimately withdrawn from Ukraine following Prigozhin’s attempted coup against Putin in June, and the remaining Wagner mercenaries are reportedly dispersed between Belarus and a number of countries in Africa.
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