On Sunday, Izvestia reported from experts and research conducted by the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences that Russia is experiencing a labor shortage of approximately 4.8 million workers and employees in 2023, with this issue expected to continue sharply into 2024. Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina stated last month that the shrinking workforce in Russia threatens economic growth as Moscow channels financial and material resources into the military.
Hundreds of thousands of Russians left the country following what the Kremlin describes as a special military operation in Ukraine, including highly skilled IT specialists. Their flight was motivated by disagreement with the war or fear of being drafted to fight in it. The emigration increased after President Vladimir Putin announced partial mobilization for about 300,000 recruits. Earlier this month, Putin praised the historically low unemployment rate of 2.9 percent. He claims there is no current need for a new wave of military mobilization.
Izvestia quoted researcher Nikolai Akhapkin stating that the labor shortage surged significantly in 2022 and 2023, with particularly high demand for drivers and store workers. According to official data relayed by the newspaper, the number of vacant positions increased to 6.8 percent by mid-2023, up from 5.8 percent a year prior.
The newspaper referenced new research stating, "If we expand the data provided by Rosstat (the official statistics agency) to include the entire workforce, the labor shortage in 2023 will initially reach 4.8 million people." It noted that Labor Minister Anton Kotyakov indicated the shortage is particularly severe in manufacturing, construction, and transportation sectors, forcing companies to raise wages to attract more employees. Tatiana Zakharova from the Russian Economic University named after thinker G.V. Plekhanov mentioned that the labor shortage is likely to continue next year, making it especially difficult to find candidates for factory workers, engineers, doctors, and teachers among other fields.
