new old idea
In the context of the continuing withdrawal of Western businesses from the Russian market and the decrease in the number of jobs in Russia, they began to talk again about the possible transition of companies to a four-day regime. Alexander Shershukov, vice-president of the Russian Federation of Independent Trade Unions (FNPR), noted that this measure will help maintain a relatively low unemployment rate.
“Here is the situation; The number of jobs has decreased, more people are applying. Perhaps it makes sense to reduce the length of normal working hours in order to divide this rate among several workers without loss of wages,” he said.
The Ministry of Labor previously reported that the number of unemployed citizens decreased by 22.6 thousand (3.2%) in February 2022. If in January 705.4 thousand people were registered as unemployed in Russia, then last month this figure was 682.8 thousand employees, but mass layoffs are not planned in Russia.
The Center for Strategic Studies (CSR) has the opposite point of view. The organization noted that due to the sanctions crisis, the number of jobs in the Russian economy could be reduced by 2 million by the end of 2022. An alternative to this scenario would be a long-term structural decline in production, with a consequent rise in the unemployment rate to 6.4%-6.5% over the next few years.
Saving won’t work
The only condition for Russian companies to massively switch to a four-day work week is to cut employee salaries. But the problem is that a sharp reduction in the working regime means the opposite, Anton Sviridenko, head of the Expert Center under the Russian President under the Commissar for the Protection of Entrepreneurs’ Rights, emphasized in a conversation with Gazeta. ru.
“With this approach, savings are unlikely to be successful. According to Article 93 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, a part-time regime with a reduction in wages can indeed be established, but by agreement of the parties. In the current discussion, we are talking about the fact that, apparently, there is no need for the parties to agree, ”the analyst explained.
He added that in the context of the financial crisis and Western sanctions, a reduced work regime is possible. But if this measure is quite reasonable from the point of view of the employer, then it is debatable for the employee.
Gennady Onishchenko, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the country’s former chief medical doctor, agrees with him. According to him, the transition to a four-day working week is possible only in those sectors of the economy that do not require a constant presence at work.
“Have you lost your mind? Have you ever thought about what will happen to schools and hospitals during the transition to a four-day period? In this case, it is possible to achieve significant economic growth only with a complete technical re-equipment of enterprises. This will never happen in medicine, “Onishchenko socialbites.ca in an interview with.
“People need scheduled examinations, surgeries, hospitalizations. What, now the castle clinics will be closed from Friday to Sunday? Not to mention the lack of staff to replace those who left for four days. You need to think before you suggest such nonsense,” Onishchenko summarized.
Can unemployment be prevented?
Economist Tatyana Kulikova emphasized that Western sanctions against Russia are “serious and long-lasting” and that it will be almost impossible to replace the lack of Western technologies in fields such as dentistry, mechanical engineering and electronics with Russian counterparts.
“The real income level of the population has been falling for the last seven or eight years, the sanctions will further strain the solvency of the majority of Russians. As a result, people will not buy what they can do without it in difficult times. The entire service sector, including catering, fitness and other sectors of small and medium businesses, will be under attack,” he said.
Western sanctions have already led to the exit of many foreign firms from Russia. This caused tens of thousands of Russian citizens to lose their jobs. In such facts, he suggested that by April 2022 the unemployment rate in Russia could rise above 10%.
Valery Ryazansky, head of the Union of Pensioners of Russia, also made a pessimistic forecast for the growth of unemployment in the country. According to him, the number of unemployed in the coming months is comparable to the peak levels of the pandemic – 5-6 million citizens. Companies’ transition to a four-day work week will help cool the negative trend.
“Dozens, even hundreds of thousands of Russians worked for us in foreign factories… What should they do now? The main advantage of the four-day work week is the preservation of employment with a small risk of a drop in wages. This does not reduce labor productivity, because you can correctly distribute tasks, ”explained Ryazansky.
He added that the employee can spend the rest of the week looking for a part-time job or a second job. In the context of the financial crisis, this will be far from unnecessary and will help citizens compensate for the decline in real incomes.
Natalya Danina, chief labor market specialist at hh.ru, also found a rational grain in the transition of companies to a four-day period. According to him, the relatively low unemployment rate in the country is explained by the fact that companies often cut wages, hours and social packages instead of layoffs.
“If a company is facing a decline in production, a four-day workweek during a crisis is an adequate alternative to reporting downtime. In addition, it helps retain staff and shut down business while reducing the cost of payroll.”
What are companies saying?
In 2022, the hh.ru portal has not yet conducted a survey among Russian employers about the possibility of companies switching to a four-day working week. However, the results of last year’s survey pointed to firms’ skepticism about the transformation of the labor market.
Only 9% of company representatives surveyed said their companies could transition to a four-day workweek in the next one to two years. Another 77% refused to consider such an option at all.
“At the same time, company representatives personally supported the idea of reducing the working week in the majority (66%). Among representatives of large companies (more than 500 employees), this share even reached 82 percent.
At the same time, small firms (up to 100 employees) were more wary of such an initiative. There, about 37% did not support the transition to a four-day work week.
The main advantages of company representatives are the reduction of employee burnout (58%), more efficient use of working time (48%), improvement of employee health (38%). Among the key shortcomings, respondents identified a decline in wages (38%) and a decline in labor productivity (33%).