Why personnel shortage has become the main problem of the Russian economy

The Russian economy has almost completely used the available labor resources and is left “without free hands,” said the head of the Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, at a joint meeting of State Duma committees, presenting the Main Directions of the Unified State Monetary Policy for the next three years. She noted that the main factor constraining further economic growth is not so much a lack of money as a shortage of personnel. According to her, this problem is felt especially acutely by industries that have already “overstepped the pre-crisis level,” such as, for example, mechanical engineering and the chemical industry.

The unemployment rate in Russia has been at 3% since July of this year. This is a record low on record since 1991. The abnormally low unemployment rate is slowing down the country’s economy, Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov said in September. The minister noted that the shortage of personnel – both quantitative and qualitative – is a “serious systemic challenge.”