Migrants in Russia are to be replaced by local personnel

In Russia, the share of foreign workers in the construction sector is 13-15%, and this sector is facing a shortage of labor. This was reported by the Chairman of the State Duma of Russia, Vyacheslav Volodin, on his Telegram channel.

Volodin noted that to address the problem of labor shortages in the construction industry, it is primarily necessary to focus on increasing labor productivity and the prestige of working professions, as well as preparing local professional personnel. He believes it is incorrect to fill the labor shortage solely with migrant workers.

In his opinion, attracting migrants is an easy way to solve the problem, but in the future, this will lead to greater difficulties. This can be seen in the example of other countries, especially in Europe, the parliamentarian stated. He did not specify what exactly these significant difficulties are.

Experts believe that the actual share of migrants employed in the construction sector may significantly exceed the official 13-15%, however, while Volodin acknowledges the labor shortage on one hand, he intentionally downplays the contribution of foreign labor migrants to this sector on the other hand.

At the same time, Volodin, speaking about migration policy issues and tightening the rules for the stay and employment of foreigners, stated that the legal framework has been established and that 22 federal laws have been adopted in the last two years.

The Chairman of the State Duma of Russia also touched upon the issue of regulating the education of migrant children, noting that exams in Russian language proficiency have been introduced for their better adaptation, which, in his opinion, is one of the ways to improve the quality of education.

It is important to note that recently, State Duma deputies have been adopting more and more laws to tighten migration policy.

Thus, on March 18 of this year, the State Duma approved in the first reading a government bill that provides for changes to the rules for the stay of labor migrants’ children in the country. According to the law, after reaching adulthood, labor migrants’ children can remain in the country if they make an advance payment and obtain a patent. Otherwise, they must leave the territory of the Russian Federation within 30 days.

It is also proposed to annul the temporary residence permit (RVP) and residence permit (VNZh) if a labor migrant has worked less than 10 months in a year or if their income per family member is below the regional subsistence minimum.