Conference of the consortium of journals of FE Lomonosov Moscow State University, population economics, demography, labour economics

Within the frames of the Third Annual Scientific Conference of the Consortium of Journals of the Faculty of Economics of Lomonosov Moscow State University (October 23, 2019, Moscow, Lomonosov Moscow State University, https://www.econ.msu.ru/science/ccj-2019/) two sections “Population Economics and Demography” (organizer Irina Kalabikhina, Russia) https://demography.econ.msu.ru/news/News.20191025153016_6674/) and “Man and Labour” (organizer Taniana Razumova) were held. The relevant problems of our subject area “Population and economics” were discussed at these sections.

Fourteen presentations were made at the section “Population Economics and Demography”. A number of authors devoted their reports to the issues of demographic losses from smoking and the effectiveness of anti-tobacco policy in Russia. For example, the life expectancy of smokers is 5.2 to 5.3 years lower than those who have never smoked. The healthy life expectancy of smokers is less by 2.6-3.2 years. It is important that the “tobacco epidemic” in Russia is declining in men, but not in women. This result is obtained even with proven underestimation of the level of tobacco consumption in Russian women (P.O. Kuznetsova).

The determinants of starting smoking and giving it up in Russia are quite similar: women are generally less likely to start and quit (although urban women are more likely to smoke than rural women). Higher education and higher income have the same influence as being female on the individual’s beginning or quitting smoking. At the same time, the anti-tobacco policy in Russia has shown its effectiveness since 2013: it reduced the risk of smoking and increased the likelihood of smoking cessation for different population groups (I.A.Denisova, S.I.Ten).

The first results of a regional headache study (3,124 patients, Ural region) showed a low level of access to doctors, inadequate diagnosis (only 12% of patients with migraine received such a diagnosis), lack of preventive treatment, which ultimately affects direct and indirect economic losses from headache in such circumstances (D.V.Gilev).

Age profiles of labour income in Russia are characterized by a relatively early (in comparison with many developed and developing countries) age of maximum labour income (30-35 years) and a decrease in labour income after 45 years. However, in the age group of 50-65 there is a slight increase in income year by year. Such distribution is typical for men despite their education and residence (urban or rural); for women the age of maximum labour income is shifted to the age 40-45 (when children have reached relatively adult age) and in dynamics approaches to the pre-reform age of retirement (55 years). Lower income of women compared to men during the life-cycle if typical for all educational groups, and in some occupational groups (e.g. public administration and security) the gap is especially large (V.A.Kozlov, K.V.Kuznetsov).

The effect of inequality of opportunities of the individual on inequality of achievements is studied by means of parametric methods. It is revealed that inequality of opportunities explains a quarter of the existing inequality of labour income and a sixth part of inequality of average per capita income of the population of the Russian Federation at the national level. This contribution varies considerably by region and by sex and age group of the population (M.A.Kartseva).

Two reports focused on the situation of orphans and migrants. The level of orphanhood in Russia decreased by 21.4% between 2008 and 2017, the proportion of orphans and children left without parental care in the total number of children amounted to 1.94% in 2017. But the phenomenon of repeated orphanhood occurs. Approximately 1% of decisions on giving custody of a child to a family are annulled each year: 2/3 at the initiative of foster parents or adoptive parents, the rest at the initiative of guardianship authorities. A cluster analysis identified four groups of regions, differing by the level of secondary orphanhood, family distress and economic status of such families. Among the reasons for returning children, psychological and pedagogical ones take a lead (O.V.Kuchmaev).

The survey of migrant workers from Kyrgyzstan in Russia show that only about a third (34%) do not want to obtain Russian citizenship, while only 46% want to permanently live in Russia (702 questionnaires, 16 interviews, at support of the Tien Shan Analytical Center of AUCA). Citizenship makes it easier to get a job, get medical care, be protected during police checks. 2/3 of respondents declared good attitude of local residents in major cities of Russia (Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg). However, everyday communication goes mainly through work colleagues and relatives. The tendency of labour migrants from Kyrgyzstan in Russia to act via their countrymen and relatives results in unclaimed mechanisms of labour rights protection, which are available to citizens of Kyrgyzstan after its accession to the EAEU (D.V.Poletayev).

The presentations at the section were also dealing with the results of studies on the demographic processes dynamics in Russia in 1990-2018 (Y.Y.Shitova, Y.A.Shitov); on the factor of population ageing in macroeconomic development of Russia (A.K.Solovyev); on demographic challenges in the Russian Arctic region (N.V.Govorova); on the contribution of the “Demography” National Project in financial support of families with children (V.V.Elizarov); on actual trends in reproductive regulation of fertility in Russia (N.E.Rusanova); on the “marriage market” in Moscow in 1960-1990s (N.M.Kalmykova); on the characteristics of seasonal settlements in Russia and Europe — about dachas (A.V.Rusanov).

In the year of centenary of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the section “Man and Labour” brought together Russian and foreign researchers, professors, ILO experts in the field of employment, labour market, labour relations for a discussion on global, Russian and intra-firm prospects of the future of labour. There were 15 speakers at the section.

Human labour activity was analyzed both in terms of changes in the content of labour, structural changes in the labour market and in the light of projections of quantitative reduction of labour, related primarily to improving its productivity. It is shown, for example, that if all the savings from the introduction of digital technologies in production were used to reduce the working day without lowering wages and reducing the number of employees, the economically developed countries could complete the transition to a 6-hour working day within 4-7 years (A.V.Zolotov).

The impact of tax reforms in Russia on the economic behaviour of individuals in relation to labour activity was assessed: the net productivity effect of changing the equilibrium value of labour supply is almost half less than the effect of wage flexibility, i.e. wages react to changes in rates more than to how many people actually work; an increase in the rate of insurance premiums positively affects the individual’s decision to work; an increase in the tax rate of 1% on average causes an increase in hidden income by 0.39% (K.V.Vekerle).

Intervention of new digital tools has resulted the formation of new institutions in the labor market, including in the areas of staffing: about 70% of organizations in Russia turn to search for new employees via the Internet. This method is most frequently applied, having pushed ads in mass media to second place (O.V.Budzinskaya). At the same time, a total of 6,956 jobs with the possibility of remote work were found on job search sites, while the number of search requests for this type of job is 185,631, which indicates mismatch between job offers with distance employment and the demand for them in Russia (E.I. Reshetova).

The new trends in employment of university graduates in Russia are revealed with an emphasis on employment within their specialty: the employment rate of university graduates within their specialty at the first job is 68.7%. Graduates believe that for 70% of the employed their work corresponds to the profile of the received education. Young people with higher education who graduated in 2015-2017 (Labour Force Survey, Rosstat, 2018), mainly work within their profile in medical specialties — over 90%. Over 80% of graduates work within their profile in stage arts, literary work, chemistry, veterinary medicine, military administration, and others. The least percentage of graduates working within their specialty are in political science and regionalsStudies (39%); agriculture, forestry and fisheries (42%), technology of light industry (47%), sociology and social work (49%), Earth sciences (50%) (O.A.Zolotina).

The role of additional vocational training in positive changes in employees was confirmed. A study conducted in 2017-2019 among entrants, listeners and graduates of the MBA program of the Faculty of Economics of Lomonosov Moscow State University confirmed the validity of the expectations of the majority of graduates from the absorption of the program (91.3% of respondents), and also demonstrated the positive impact of the absorption of the program of professional re-training with the assignment of additional qualification on the career of the graduate from the positions of three parameters: income growth (45.8% of respondents), career growth (50% of respondents) and job satisfaction growth (62.5% of respondents) (I.D. Burak, T.O. Razumova).

Analysis of the activity of employment centers in employment assistance for disabled persons in the Moscow region, showed a narrowing of the list of target groups of such programs: these are predominantly persons with psychoneurological/mental disorders. Researchers have developed recommendations to increase the number of target groups, such as the inclusion of persons disabled in wars and military conflicts, and proposed instruments to implement such programs (R.P. Kolosova, M.V. Ludanik).

The participants of the section also discussed the competitiveness index for employees, companies and the state (M.V. Artamonova, M.A. Ivanenko); the impact of digitalization on employment and social areas (E.S.Sadovaya); the development of the digital university model (S.D.Enikeev); the effectiveness of the foresight method in the development of digital competencies of the population (Khoroshiltseva N.A.); gender programs of employment assistance for disabled persons (E.A. Sidorova); the establishment of an association of researchers and teachers in the field of labour economics (N.V. Loktyukhina).

Irina Evgenyevna Kalabikhina, Doctor in Economics, Professor, Head of the Population Department of the Faculty of Economics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, kalabikhina@econ.msu.ru

Tatiana Olegovna Razumova, Doctor in Economics, Professor, Head of the Department of Labour Economics and Personnel of the Faculty of Economics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, tatiana.razumowa@yandex.ru