The labor market in Russia is showing a high rate of recovery from the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is stated in the joint research provided by RT with the personnel selection service Rabota.ru and the SberIndex laboratory.

According to the authors of the report, in the first half of 2021, the number of vacancies in the country increased by 22% compared to the same period in 2020. 

“Russian business has adapted to the new realities imposed by the global coronavirus pandemic.

Since the beginning of 2021, the activity of employers has been growing every month, ”the message says. 

HeadHunter service specialists record similar dynamics.

As the head of the organization's research service, Maria Ignatova, told RT, the number of open vacancies in Russia in July of this year almost reached 1 million, which is 15% higher than at the beginning of 2021.

On average, from January to July, the number of offers from employers increases by 3-4% month to month, the expert added. 

“Now there is no traditional summer lull, recruiting specialists continue to actively search for personnel on the orders of companies.

At the end of the half-year, recruiting activity was on average 18-20% higher than in the same periods of the pre-crisis 2017-2019, ”Natalya Golovanova, head of the SuperJob research center, said in her turn to RT.

According to HeadHunter analysts, in the first seven months of 2021, the most noticeable increase was the number of vacancies in the Home Staff and Career Start, Students groups.

At the same time, Rabota.Ru experts note a sharp increase in proposals in the field of finance and insurance, as well as in marketing, advertising and the media. 

“Among the applicants, the largest increase in the number of new resumes is observed in the IT, Internet and telecom industries (an increase of 39% in six months),” the service specialists note. 

As the CEO of the Rocket Work platform Anastasia Uskova told RT, the COVID-19 pandemic was a key factor in the growth in the number of remote job vacancies.

The expert believes that in the future, work from home may become a new demanded norm of employment.

“This method of employment is beneficial, first of all, for employers, as we allow them to reduce the costs of maintaining an office.

As studies show, the efficiency of remote work does not just decrease, but sometimes even exceeds the productivity in the office, ”the expert noted. 

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Meanwhile, for applicants, this format of work is convenient because it allows them to reduce the time spent on the road to the office and work in a comfortable home environment.

This opinion was expressed in a conversation with RT by Pavel Utkin, a leading lawyer of the Parfenon United Legal Center. 

“At the same time, such labor relations are governed by the teleworking law, which entered into force on January 1, 2021.

Thus, both parties to the agreement are now protected and can, at the legislative level, prescribe the conditions for the work schedule and reasons for terminating the agreement, ”the expert emphasized. 

According to Anastasia Uskova's forecasts, in the future, the most in-demand employees will be employees in the field of online retail and entertainment, streaming services, finance, video games, as well as employees in the IT segment.

In addition, high demand will remain for personnel in the delivery of goods and services to the end consumer.

First of all, we are talking about taxi drivers and couriers, the analyst is sure.

“One of the most actively recovering spheres is trade.

New hiring has recovered and will continue to grow in the near future.

On the part of job seekers, there is also an increase in demand for vacancies.

During the pandemic, the popularity of online shopping and deliveries increased, but, as the situation on the labor market shows, the offline format of stores remains relevant, "Vladimir Koritsky, commercial director of Rabota.ru, told RT. 

Working attitude

The current revival of the employment sector is also noted by the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection.

As the deputy head of the department Elena Mukhtiyarova said earlier, the employment situation approached the pre-pandemic indicators.

According to Rosstat, in June unemployment was 4.8%.

In the context of the introduction of quarantine measures and the temporary suspension of the work of a number of companies in the spring, the indicator from March to August 2020 rose from 4.6% to 6.4% - the highest level since 2012.

In many respects, the analysts explain the acceleration in the rate of recovery of the labor market with the effect of measures of state support for business and the population.

First of all, we are talking about preferential loans to companies, reduction of insurance premiums, as well as tax breaks for enterprises and subsidies to small and medium-sized businesses. 

“Last year, entrepreneurs who received loans to pay wages were able to retain their staff to the maximum, which helped to avoid a surge in unemployment.

Now the economy is recovering, and severe restrictions apply only to certain sectors and are of a short-term nature, "Yuri Baranchik, deputy director of the Institute of International Political and Economic Strategies RUSSTRAT, emphasized in a conversation with RT. 

According to the expert, the level of employment in Russia may return to pre-crisis indicators by the end of the year.

The main factors for the labor market will be the acceleration of GDP growth, an increase in the turnover of the retail and delivery segment, as well as the return of the service sector to the previous mode of operation, Baranchik is sure.

Moreover, an increase in the number of self-employed can play in favor of reducing unemployment, Uskova said.

According to the Federal Tax Service (FTS), since the start of the experiment in 2019, 2.5 million Russians have registered as self-employed.

On average, more than 5.5 thousand people receive this status every day. 

“During the pandemic, the demand for freelancers to solve short-term project tasks has grown significantly.

The business highly appreciated the possibilities of the self-employment regime, which implies a minimum of paperwork and a noticeable reduction in tax deductions.

Therefore, this trend will continue in the future, ”concluded Uskova.