A significant share of Russian companies reduced their workforce in 2022, with about a third reporting job cuts in a large-scale industry survey of employers that included firms of different sizes. The study covered 256 organizations whose employee counts ranged from 50 to more than a thousand, and it showed that larger players more frequently faced staffing reductions. The year 2022 proved to be tougher overall for big businesses than for midsized or small firms.
Across the board, roughly three out of four of the largest enterprises felt the blows from a mix of external pressures and policy actions that took place that year. Sanctions, military operations, partial mobilization, and other geopolitical events created a challenging operating environment that bled into hiring plans and workforce stability. The impact of these disruptions varied by company size, but the trend pointed to a tougher climate for large organizations in particular.
Survey results also revealed that nearly half of the respondents believed the 2022 events affected their firms much more than the coronavirus pandemic and the restrictions that followed. About a quarter felt the impact was almost as significant, while a smaller portion viewed the effects as less dramatic. This distribution underscores how a set of unprecedented external shocks reshaped talent strategy and risk assessments for many employers.
In the broader context, the figures suggest that the labor market faced a divergence: while smaller companies often managed to preserve headcount or adjust gradually, large corporations confronted sharper cuts and longer cycles of uncertainty. The interplay between sanctions, geopolitical maneuvers, and the domestic economic response created a complex backdrop for workforce planning, with talent retention and strategic realignment taking center stage for many leadership teams.
Meanwhile, in the United States, a major online retailer announced a substantial step in its ongoing restructuring plans. The company disclosed it would lay off a large number of employees as part of a broader efficiency push, indicating that the labor market remained dynamic and susceptible to shifts in demand, supply chain pressures, and corporate strategy. This development reflected a global trend where even scaled organizations recalibrate staffing in response to evolving market conditions, competitive pressures, and geographic considerations. The announcements highlighted how 2022’s external shocks continued to reverberate into 2023, shaping hiring narratives across regions and industries. (source: industry-wide payroll surveys)