- By Tom Espiner
- Business Reporter, BBC News
Jul 23, 2023 at 2:28pm BST
Updated 3 hours ago
Image source: Getty Images
Unilever has announced that it will allow Russian employees to move to Ukraine if they are called up.
The consumer goods giant, which employs around 3,000 people in Russia, has policies in place to ensure the welfare and safety of its workers.
However, a letter to campaign group B4Ukraine said it would comply with Russia’s conscription law.
Unilever has been under pressure to withdraw from Russia but says the situation is “not easy”.
In a letter to B4Ukraine, which campaigns for companies to stop doing business in Russia to hurt its economy, Unilever said it “strongly condemns the war in Ukraine as a brutal, senseless act by the Russian state.”
The company also said it has responsibilities for its 3,000 employees, adding that it has “global policies, including the safety and well-being of our employees.”
Still, the British company, which makes products like Marmite and Cornetto ice cream, said it “is aware of the law that requires any company operating in Russia to allow the drafting of employees if they’re drafted.”
“We always comply with all laws of the countries in which we operate,” wrote Reginaldo Ecclissato, Unilever’s chief business operations and supply chain officer.
A company spokesman would not say whether any Russian employees had been called up.
Those who do so will no longer be paid by the company, the spokesman added.
The letter said it paid 3.8 billion rubles (£33 million; $36 million) in taxes to the Russian state in 2022, a similar amount to the previous year.
Most of its business in Russia is personal care and hygiene products, but it continues to supply ice cream.
In February, British intelligence services estimated that between 40,000 and 60,000 Russian soldiers had died.
Russian soldiers have also been indicted by the United Nations for war crimes, including rape, “widespread” torture and killings.
Unilever and other Western companies have been under pressure to pull out of Russia since the invasion of Ukraine.
However, Unilever said it was “not easy”. If it went out of business, these would be “appropriated and then operated” by the Russian state.
It was not possible to find a way to sell the business “that prevents the Russian state from possibly receiving further benefits and that protects our people”.
There are no “desirable” ways forward, but continuing the business under “strict restrictions” is currently the best option.
However, the Ukraine Solidarity Project, which is part of B4Ukraine, called Unilever’s response “stunning”.
“One day you’re making ice cream, the next you’re preparing for frontline action. It can’t be said that Unilever doesn’t offer its employees varied work experiences,” said activist Valeriia Voshchevska.
“When it comes to protecting your workers, I don’t want to see what putting them at risk looks like.”