From April 8 to 10, the 10th International Labor Forum was held in St. Petersburg, bringing together over 10,000 participants. The forum focused on the transformation of employment, labor sovereignty, and long-term trends through 2040. The forum confirmed a key trend: the labor market has finally entered a phase of structural shortage.
Under these circumstances, labor migration issues are becoming a priority, and a separate track was highlighted on the migration forum agenda.
The forum's main discussion: changes to the Labor Code
Natalia Vershinina, head of BRICS Mobility, took part in a roundtable discussion on organized labor migration. A lively discussion took place, intersecting two key forum topics: migration and the Labor Code (LC).
The need to amend the LC became one of the most pressing issues at the forum. Businesses believe that the current version of the Code limits the ability to increase labor productivity, which is one of the key challenges in the face of labor shortages. There are other bottlenecks, too.
"According to our Labor Code, employers owe their employees everything, regardless of whether they are Russian or foreign. We cannot pay foreigners less than Russians, but we must create additional conditions for attracting them: pay for tickets, provide food, and housing," Natalia Vershinina noted in her speech. "Look at the experience of other countries: their legislation contains specific sections on working with foreign personnel. Here, foreigners effectively receive better conditions than our citizens. And this makes attracting foreign workers unprofitable for businesses."
These words resonated strongly with the participants. The discussion demonstrated that businesses expect legislators to adopt more flexible approaches that take into account the specifics of hiring foreign employees.
Speaking at the forum, Yaroslav Nilov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy, and Veterans' Affairs, emphasized that migration should only be at the request of businesses, and that strict government oversight is needed regarding wages, work location, and mobility.
Businesses support the transition to an organized recruitment model, as it provides greater predictability and control.
BRICS Mobility: We've Known It All Along
It's significant that BRICS Mobility has been implementing many of the requirements that the government is only just beginning to legislate into the organized recruitment model (pre-migration preparation, psychological testing, and social contracts) for 10 years.
Natalia Vershinina cited specific figures: in projects with a full training cycle (motivational selection, language training, signing an offer before departure, and a mentoring system), turnover is reduced from 70% to 10-15% per year.
"The inclusion of mandatory pre-migration training provisions in legislation was partly at our instigation. We were approached by employers who were losing money due to staff turnover at a rate of 120% per year; they were essentially running a tourism business—bringing in workers, losing them, and bringing them back again. And this was a direct consequence of the lack of a recruitment system," she noted.
Without our own infrastructure and legal entities abroad, high-quality selection is impossible. This is why BRICS Mobility is opening its own training centers in recruiting countries.
The forum's results suggest a conclusion relevant to any employer.
On the one hand, society is increasingly demanding restrictions on migration and is placing a premium on increasing the productivity of Russian citizens. On the other, businesses understand that they cannot do without foreign markets. But having been burned by the experience of CIS migrants who frequently change jobs, employers want greater stability.
What's next?
The forum demonstrated that the direction of labor migration is firmly set. By 2027, organized recruitment will be the only legal model. Businesses will either have to develop complex internal expertise (which is expensive and time-consuming) or choose a partner who already has this expertise and is accountable for the results.
BRICS Mobility is ready for these changes. Moreover, we have anticipated them in many ways. Our experience is not theory, but a working technology that allows companies to build a sustainable HR strategy for years to come.
Under these circumstances, labor migration issues are becoming a priority, and a separate track was highlighted on the migration forum agenda.
The forum's main discussion: changes to the Labor Code
Natalia Vershinina, head of BRICS Mobility, took part in a roundtable discussion on organized labor migration. A lively discussion took place, intersecting two key forum topics: migration and the Labor Code (LC).
The need to amend the LC became one of the most pressing issues at the forum. Businesses believe that the current version of the Code limits the ability to increase labor productivity, which is one of the key challenges in the face of labor shortages. There are other bottlenecks, too.
"According to our Labor Code, employers owe their employees everything, regardless of whether they are Russian or foreign. We cannot pay foreigners less than Russians, but we must create additional conditions for attracting them: pay for tickets, provide food, and housing," Natalia Vershinina noted in her speech. "Look at the experience of other countries: their legislation contains specific sections on working with foreign personnel. Here, foreigners effectively receive better conditions than our citizens. And this makes attracting foreign workers unprofitable for businesses."
These words resonated strongly with the participants. The discussion demonstrated that businesses expect legislators to adopt more flexible approaches that take into account the specifics of hiring foreign employees.
Speaking at the forum, Yaroslav Nilov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy, and Veterans' Affairs, emphasized that migration should only be at the request of businesses, and that strict government oversight is needed regarding wages, work location, and mobility.
Businesses support the transition to an organized recruitment model, as it provides greater predictability and control.
BRICS Mobility: We've Known It All Along
It's significant that BRICS Mobility has been implementing many of the requirements that the government is only just beginning to legislate into the organized recruitment model (pre-migration preparation, psychological testing, and social contracts) for 10 years.
Natalia Vershinina cited specific figures: in projects with a full training cycle (motivational selection, language training, signing an offer before departure, and a mentoring system), turnover is reduced from 70% to 10-15% per year.
"The inclusion of mandatory pre-migration training provisions in legislation was partly at our instigation. We were approached by employers who were losing money due to staff turnover at a rate of 120% per year; they were essentially running a tourism business—bringing in workers, losing them, and bringing them back again. And this was a direct consequence of the lack of a recruitment system," she noted.
Without our own infrastructure and legal entities abroad, high-quality selection is impossible. This is why BRICS Mobility is opening its own training centers in recruiting countries.
The forum's results suggest a conclusion relevant to any employer.
On the one hand, society is increasingly demanding restrictions on migration and is placing a premium on increasing the productivity of Russian citizens. On the other, businesses understand that they cannot do without foreign markets. But having been burned by the experience of CIS migrants who frequently change jobs, employers want greater stability.
What's next?
The forum demonstrated that the direction of labor migration is firmly set. By 2027, organized recruitment will be the only legal model. Businesses will either have to develop complex internal expertise (which is expensive and time-consuming) or choose a partner who already has this expertise and is accountable for the results.
BRICS Mobility is ready for these changes. Moreover, we have anticipated them in many ways. Our experience is not theory, but a working technology that allows companies to build a sustainable HR strategy for years to come.