Russia sets new record for labour shortage despite high wages

As of the end of 2024, Russian companies faced a shortage of 2.6 million workers, a 17% increase compared to the previous year, setting a new record.

Source: The Moscow Times, citing a report by Russia’s Higher School of Economics

Details: The most acute shortages are in manufacturing (391,000 workers), trade (347,000) and transport (219,000). Employers in these sectors are offering salaries above RUB 100,000 (approx. US$ 717), around one and a half times higher than the national average.

The study attributes the growing number of job openings in manual labour professions to a decline in migrant workers, the depreciation of the rouble, and the impact of a series of economic shocks.

The outlet notes that the deepening labour crisis is directly linked to the consequences of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.

In 2022, around 300,000 working-age men were mobilised. Meanwhile, between 650,000 and 1.1 million people left the country, protesting Kremlin policies and fleeing mobilisation. Further army recruitment has only worsened the labour shortage.

At the same time, sanctions have weakened the economy and triggered a sharp fall in the rouble. This, along with tighter migration laws, has led to a significant outflow of citizens from Central Asian countries.

Background: In the first quarter of 2025, domestic sales of Russian agricultural machinery dropped sharply.

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