Away from the office: over the year in Russia, the number of people willing to work remotely has grown almost sixfold

From January to mid-March 2021, Russians' interest in remote work grew almost six times (481%) compared to the same period in 2020.

Experts from the Avito Rabota analytical center told RT about this.

According to the company, over the past year, students and young people with no work experience have become interested in distance employment most of all.

In this category, the demand for telecommuting has grown more than 12 times (by 1146%).

In addition, the desire of employees to work from home has significantly increased in such areas as "Banking, Investments" (by 948%), "Administrative work" (by 913%), "Marketing, Advertising, PR" (by 903%), and also IT, Internet, Telecom (by 722%).

Such dynamics is largely due to the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Anastasia Uskova, CEO of the Rocket Work platform.

“Today, more than 40% of employees would like to continue working remotely.

These people can be understood - they spend more time with their family and spend less time on the road.

At the same time, the demand for distance employment is supported by employers.

The pandemic has shown that productivity does not fall when the distance is removed, and sometimes even shows an increase, ”the expert said.

According to Avito Rabota's estimates, over the year in Russia the number of vacancies with distance employment has almost tripled (by 189%).

A noticeable increase in the indicator is also recorded by the specialists of the SuperJob service.

According to the company, most often employers are ready to hire an employee remotely in the IT segment, as well as in sales and finance.

“Most of the vacancies with remote working conditions are now published by companies from Moscow, as well as from St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg.

However, similar offers from employers already exist in all cities with a population of one million and in most cities with a population of half a million, ”Natalya Golovanova, head of the SuperJob research center, said in a conversation with RT.

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During the self-isolation regime, many companies were able to restructure their workflows without compromising their bottom line.

As a result, even after most of the quarantine restrictions were lifted, some organizations decided not to take employees to the office.

Ilya Skryabin, co-founder of CONNECTIVE, told RT about this.

“The pandemic has shown that even in production it is possible to work remotely in the same mode.

Therefore, in companies, especially in the field of procurement and IT, completely remote work or a hybrid form of employment is becoming the norm, ”added Skriabin.

According to a survey by VTsIOM, today almost every tenth Russian (11%) works remotely, and another 12% of citizens work in combination - partly at home, partly from the office.

At the same time, a year ago, the indicators were close to 4 and 6%, respectively.

According to Anastasia Uskova, the growing number of remote employees allows businesses to significantly save on production costs.

“Remote workers do not need to pay for food costs, they do not need to keep the office clean and equip their workplaces.

And HR departments, without being tied to geolocation, can get access to a wider range of specialists from other regions, ”Uskova emphasized.

Note that on January 1, 2021, a law regulating remote work came into force in Russia.

According to the document, the fulfillment of his duties by an employee remotely can occur on an ongoing basis (during the entire duration of the employment contract) or temporarily, that is, continuously for up to six months.

The law also provides for the alternation of retirement and employment at a stationary workplace.

The approved initiative protects the rights of both parties to the contract and helps to understand the intricacies of the new form of work.

Pavel Utkin, a leading lawyer of the Parfenon United Legal Center, told about this to RT.

“The document defines the provisions on the interaction of employees outside of working hours, and also gives the employee the right to receive the necessary equipment.

In addition, it is now possible to take compensation from the employer for utility costs associated with working outside the office, including the cost of electricity and the Internet.

In general, the changes should improve the position of remote workers and promote the development of new forms of employment, ”the expert added.

Moreover, the trend for remote work may lead to an increase in the number of self-employed in Russia, analysts are sure.

According to the latest data from the Federal Tax Service (FTS), in February 2021, about 1.7 million Russians already had this status.

“The number of such citizens is increasing daily by 6-7 thousand and, according to our forecasts, in the next decade the number of self-employed in the country may reach 10 million. Cooperation with such specialists is much cheaper for businesses due to the low income tax rate and the lack of insurance premiums. and employees can work safely from home.

This is another factor due to which the trend towards distance, which took shape during the pandemic, will remain with us for a long time, ”concluded Anastasia Uskova.