We haven't worked for more than ten years
Russians are breaking old stereotypes that they don't like to work. According to the FinExpertiza study, the actual length of the working week in Russia reached a maximum over the past 10 years and amounted to 38 hours and 30 minutes. The previous record is dated the fourth quarter of 2012, when our five-day week lasted 38 hours and 29 minutes.
< span itemprop="height" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/QuantitativeValue">
The authors of the study note that the labor achievement of the first quarter of this year was provided by women. Over the past year, men have added only 4 minutes to their work, while the weaker sex — as much as 27 minutes.
However, men traditionally inject more than women — an average of 1 hour and 45 minutes. That is, on average, it turns out 39 hours 21 minutes for them and 37 hours 36 minutes for women. In general, it is understandable why men increased their working week by only 4 minutes: they have almost no reserves of working time left. In general, the actual duration of the working week increased by 15 minutes over the year.
Well, Russians worked the least at the height of the coronavirus pandemic — only 31 hours 37 minutes.
By the way, the study is very representative: it was conducted on the basis of data from Rosstat, 77,000 people aged 15 and over took part in the survey.
According to experts, the increase in workload among Russians is primarily due to a shortage of personnel. During the period of minimum unemployment in the country, you have to work, as the old song sings, «for yourself and for that guy.» Moreover, there is a material incentive to produce more products: since the beginning of this year, wages in the industrial sector of the economy, according to official data, have increased.
But here the main question arises: according to the Labor Code, the working week in our country should be 40 hours. And it seems strange that even having a record increase, it remains less than measured by law. How can this be?
— 40 hours — this is the maximum length of the working week — explains Pavel Kudyukin, trade unionist, former Deputy Minister of Labor of the Russian Federation. – But we have categories of workers who, for various reasons, have a shortened working week. For example, for teachers, it is 35 hours, although they usually work for more than one rate. There are jobs associated with harmful and difficult working conditions — miners, metallurgists … For this reason, the average working week in Russia is not 40 hours, but less.
— The data of any poll is always not completely accurate. However, on large samples, right-left deviations cancel each other out. They do not give accuracy to the minute, but show a trend. It's a fact that shifts are getting tighter. Many Russians have overtime hours, especially at enterprises fulfilling defense orders. In many industries, employers can impose overtime even without the consent of the employee. This is also one of the reasons for the increase in the length of the working week.
— No, the increase in the number of shifts does not affect the length of the working week. Moreover, the night shift is shortened by law, that is, on the contrary, it reduces the average working week.
— In Europe, there are two countries with the longest working week. These are Russia and Greece. Another thing is that we have a long week, and low labor productivity. Much depends on the ability of the employer to organize the rhythm of production.
— They are called physiological breaks, but their number and duration are not regulated. This is determined by local regulations, or simply by the customs that have developed in production.