Not now, but in the long term: Medvedev called the conditions for the transition to a four-day working week

Reducing the duration of the working week in Russia from five days to four in the future is quite possible. This was stated by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. According to him, in order to make the reduction in the number of working days possible, it is necessary to first make a number of changes to labor legislation.

“Obviously, we also need to think about changes in the labor legislation for the future, bearing in mind various forms of labor regulation, including the so-called remote work and flexible work hours, as well as, in the future, maybe the transition to a four-day work week” - said Medvedev.

However, he emphasized that we are not talking about an immediate transition to a four-day period. “This cannot be understood too literally now, this, of course, is not this second,” the prime minister added.

Medvedev noted that before making any decisions at the legislative level, it is necessary to take into account the interests of both the employee and the employer.

“And, absolutely exactly in this case (in the case of a transition to a four-day working week. - RT ), you need to take into account all the nuances associated with the requests of both the employee and the employer. Obviously, this should be accompanied by an increase in labor productivity on the one hand, when it comes to a full-fledged work week, and, of course, the preservation of the wages that are available, and not by a reduction or in any other way so that with it (wages. - RT ) arrived, ”the head of government explained.

At the same time, he noted that the transition to a four-day period is fully consistent with the realities of the development of society.

“More recently - in historical terms - there was a six-day work week in our country, and this was seen as the norm. And now the five-day work week is the norm. But society is developing, technology does not stand still, which is why these issues appear on the agenda, ”said Dmitry Medvedev.

Not near future

The prospect of switching to a four-day work week sparked debate in society, dividing it almost equally into supporters and opponents. But experts believe that if such a transition is possible in the Russian Federation, then not earlier than in 10-15 years.

“This issue can be resolved in 10 years minimum, and most likely in 15 years, when we switch to some additive technologies, robotics, and introduce a large amount of labor-saving technologies,” said Georgy Ostapkovich, Director of the Center for Market Studies at the Higher School of Economics, RT .

At the moment, a reduction in the work week will lead to a drop in GDP, the expert said. “If we move to a four-day period with the same wages now, we will lose about 2.5-3% of GDP and significantly reduce labor productivity. If we reduce time, then we lose in the volume of production, ”said Ostapkovich.

In his opinion, at this moment, the four-day issue should only be put up for public discussion in order to understand "how people will behave in this situation."

Mikhail Belyaev, an expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies (RISI), Ph.D. in Economics, believes that a number of industries can easily switch to a shorter working week.

“I think that such a transition will be painless in organizations that are associated with the ability to work on remote access. These are scientific organizations, accounting, design work - all that does not require a permanent presence in the office, ”he said in an interview with RT.

More time will be needed to adapt a shorter work week where work is associated with the production cycle. In these areas, the transition problem can be solved in two ways, Belyaev believes. “The first is the“ plugging of pores ”in the working day, that is, more intensive work, and the second is the equipment of the workplace with a more productive apparatus,” he said.

Also, the expert noted, it is necessary to carry out explanatory work among the population. “Because our population is already frightened by the reduction in the working week, which they have strongly associated with the fact that their earnings will be reduced,” Mikhail Belyaev concluded.

More likely than not

Meanwhile, the initiative of the Prime Minister is supported by almost 50% of Russians, as evidenced by the survey data from the Superjob job search service.

“Almost every second respondent (49%) supports the prime minister’s initiative, 31% against the reduction of the working week. Every fifth (20%) found it difficult to answer, ”TASS quotes the results of the survey.

Moreover, earlier in June, when Medvedev only expressed this idea during his speech at the International Labor Conference, 48% of the Russian population negatively perceived the prospect of a four-day period. This is evidenced by a survey of the All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion, published on June 24.

“About a third of the respondents (29%) would positively react to such a transition, mainly residents of Moscow and St. Petersburg (36%), other million-plus cities (34%), and 25-34-year-olds (39%),” - It was specified in the VTsIOM press release.

The main negative factors for reducing the working week, the respondents considered a probable decrease in wages and general living standards, as well as rising prices. “So, the vast majority of respondents are sure that when moving to four-day days, workers' salaries will be reduced (82%),” the center concluded.

Following the example of European countries

The prospect of switching to four working days was previously supported by the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia, which is the largest association of its kind in the country. The FNPR proposed to consider this issue in the Russian Tripartite Commission for the Regulation of Social and Labor Relations. As the representative of the Federation, Elena Kosakovskaya, noted, in some European countries, a shorter work week has long been the norm. So, according to her, ten countries of Europe with the shortest working week "are at a high level of socio-economic development."

The Ministry of Labor, in turn, emphasized that innovation should be discussed with the participation of trade unions and employers. The agency reminded that, according to the law, employers can not set a working week for more than 40 hours. In this case, the lower boundary does not exist.

“Thus, within the framework of social partnership (collective agreement) in organizations today, both the number of hours in a working day and the number of working days themselves can be reduced,” RIA Novosti quoted the text of the message of the ministry.

The Ministry of Labor should submit its position on the four-day schedule to the government by September 30th. The corresponding order was previously given by Dmitry Medvedev, Izvestia reported. So, the department will have to evaluate how such changes will affect the economy and social sphere. Moreover, it will have to carry out its work together with the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia and the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.