Russia experiencing shortage of industrial workers – media

Deficits have been partly attributed to departures of qualified personnel abroad and the military mobilization

The Russian labor market is dealing with an acute shortage of skilled industrial workers available for shift work, Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported on Friday, citing a study by the recruitment agency HeadHunter.

The most severe deficit was recorded in Russia's republic of Bashkortostan, which had previously been seen as a major workforce supplier for other regions of the country, with 6% of such positions currently vacant.

The ranking also placed the Krasnoyarsk and Irkutsk Regions (5% of vacancies unfilled), as well as the Novosibirsk and Omsk Regions (4% each) among the top five regions hit by the shortage of industrial staff.

The labor category encompasses workers in sectors such as oil and gas and mining, and often involves long hours in remote locations. Average salaries for such jobs in Russia range from 150,000 to 200,000 rubles ($1,600-$2,200) per month, according to HeadHunter.

Analysts have attributed the shortage to low birth rates in the 1990s and early 2000s, the departure of highly qualified personnel abroad, and the partial military mobilization conducted in September last year to beef up the military amid the Ukraine conflict.

READ MORE: Demand for Chinese language teachers surges in Russia – report

According to the study, no regions of Russia currently have an excess of vacant positions in industrial shift work.

Earlier this week, Russia’s Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said the country’s depleted workforce was causing acute labor shortages and threatening economic growth. She added that understaffing is particularly acute across the sectors that have already passed the pre-crisis level, such as machine building and the chemical industry.

Find more stories on economy and finance in TROIB business