Trade Union Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation and Assistance Opened in Odesa

On July 5, 2024, the Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation and Assistance was officially opened at the Odesa House of Scientists.

The project to establish the Center was launched in March 2024 and implemented with the financial support of the Italian General Confederation of Labour  (CGIL), with the assistance of Caritas-Spes-Odesa, and the organizational support of the Trade Union of Education and Science of Ukraine and the Federation of Trade Unions of Ukraine. 

Thanks to the joint efforts of the Odesa regional organization of the Trade Union and all project participants, the work on opening the Сenter at the Odesa House of Scientists was carried out in a well-coordinated way and in a quite short time.

The opening ceremony was hosted by Olha Chabaniuk, Vice President of the Trade Union of Education and Science Workers of Ukraine and Liubov Korniichuk, Head of the Trade Union Regional Committee, and attended by Piotr Rosochacki, Director of Caritas-Spes Odesa, Paolo Giacobazzi, Project Manager of the Associazione Papa Giovanni XXIII in Ukraine, Oleksandr Lonchak, Director of the Department of Education and Science of the Odesa Regional State Administration, educators, psychologists, scientists, international guests and members of the Trade Union.

CGIL representatives who joined the event online congratulated the Ukrainian partners on the successful completion of the project and the opening of the Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation and Assistance. 

Salvatore Marra, head of the Department of European and International Policies of CGIL, expressed hope that the Center will be useful and helpful for everyone who needs care and support and emphasized his deep sympathy to all those who suffer from the consequences of the russian war. Salvatore Marra also expressed his readiness to continue cooperation and further support Ukrainians in this challenging period.

Olha Chabaniuk, Vice President of the Trade Union of Education and Science Workers of Ukraine, expressed her gratitude to the Italian colleagues for their financial contribution and support for the Trade Union and noted that solidarity is one of the most important factors of victory in this extremely difficult time. 

«We are sincerely grateful for your financial support, for the assistance and understanding of the need to create such Center. This «Center of resilience» will help restore the mental health of our teachers, internally displaced persons who have suffered as a result of russian aggression and constantly live in fear of war, air raid sirens and missile strikes,» stated Olha Chabaniuk . 

During the opening ceremony, Liubov Korniychuk, head of the regional organization of the Trade Union, highlighted that russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine causes constant stress, a huge emotional load both at home and at the workplace, which negatively affects the lives and mental health of Ukrainians. Trade Union members from Odesa are no exception, as teachers and lecturers have a double psycho-emotional burden and need to be responsible not only for their own safety, but also for the safety of their students. 

«Support and assistance to educators in Odesa is extremely important today, and such a Center is a necessary thing in wartime,» emphasized Liubov Korniychuk, adding that she is proud that the regional organization was given the opportunity to create its own Center. 

The funds received from the CGIL were used to renovate the premises allocated for the establishment of the Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation and Assistance. A psychologist's office for individual counseling, a small conference room for group lessons and trainings, and a sanitary unit were created. The premises are equipped with office and upholstered furniture, computer and multimedia equipment. 

To ensure the effective work of the Center in providing quality services for diagnosing the psychological health of scientists and educators, helping them adapt to difficult living conditions, restoring and maintaining their psychological health in the conditions of war, the positions of the Center's head and a responsible specialist were added to the staff of the committee of the Odesa organization of the Trade Union.

 The participants of the event expressed hope that the Center for Social and Psychological Rehabilitation and Assistance at the Odesa House of Scientists will become a center of stress resistance for educators and students, help strengthen their mental health and overcome the effects of stressful conditions in the war.

International Department