The term “labor shortage” has become the defining characteristic of the labor market in 2024. This trend is expected to persist into 2025, dubbed a sort of "HR year," Rossiyskaya Gazeta writes, citing SuperJob agency.

Eight out of ten companies are reportedly operating under conditions of staff shortages.  The most in-demand workers this past year included skilled laborers, truck drivers, heavy machinery operators, frontline retail staff, warehouse workers, and couriers.

According to SuperJob, hiring workers today is as challenging as recruiting managers.

Amid this shortage, employers in the HR field have been increasing salary offers, which rose by 12.9% over the year (compared to 6.5% in 2023).

The number of vacancies reportedly increased by 10% compared to the previous year.  Considering a 1.5-fold increase in vacancies in 2023, the Russian labor market has seen a 1.7-fold rise in vacancies over the past two years.

Previously, Russian experts noted a growing demand for foreign labor, but more than half of companies relying on migrant workers struggle to hire them in sufficient numbers.

According to hh.ru, 53% of surveyed companies report a lack of foreign labor resources, while 46% are somewhat satisfied with their current migrant hiring levels.