Russian companies are faced with a critical shortage of labor for seasonal work in the field and have asked the authorities to open the border for migrants as an exception. First Deputy Minister of Agriculture Dzhambulat Khatuov appealed to Deputy Prime Minister Victoria Abramchenko with such an initiative, RBC reports.
He explained that the regions estimate the labor shortage at 38.2 thousand people. Most of all, 22.3 thousand people, need the Volgograd and Astrakhan regions. There vegetables are grown and harvested by hand.
Agrarians complained that local residents do not want to work, and besides, they often do not have the necessary skills. It is not possible to replace migrants with them, usually from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, even for increased wages.
In a letter to the Deputy Head of the Ministry of Agriculture, he noted that in 2020, farmers had to pay up to five thousand rubles per shift. But now those who were involved then are not ready to work even for that kind of money. As a result, farmers warn, prices for products may rise significantly, and enterprises will lose profit.
Abramchenko instructed the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Labor and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to work out the issue so that in 2021 migrants can still come. The press service of the Ministry of Agriculture indicated that they have already submitted proposals to the Ministry of Labor.
Russia limited the entry of foreign workers in March 2020 due to the coronavirus epidemic. The ban was later extended indefinitely. Despite the fact that some of the workers managed to get into the country before the borders were closed, the agrarians still complained about their shortage. According to RANEPA estimates, Russian agriculture needs about half a million migrants.
Earlier, the head of the Moscow construction department, Rafik Zagrutdinov, said that about 15-20 thousand workers from abroad are lacking at construction sites in Moscow.