Labor Markets of Urban Agglomerations in Russia

Abstract—The article analyzes the current state of the labor market in Russia’s largest urban agglomerations. The zonal model of agglomeration (out of three elements) is applied to consider the indicator of official jobs security (formal employment) and wage level, as well as their differences with distance from the center. For this, tax reporting data from the Federal Tax Service are used that most fully characterize the state of the labor market and span the full range of enterprises and organizations. The balance method (ratio of supply and demand for labor) of existing disparities in the well-being and wage was used to assess all agglomerations in terms of the relative and absolute potential for labor migration development. A strong differentiation in the structure of the labor market in Russian agglomerations is demonstrated. The situation in the center of an agglomeration in the main turns out to be much better than on its periphery; however, cases of various combined indicators up to inversion are possible, when the center of an agglomeration lags behind its environs both in job saturation and wages. Based on the combination of these indicators, 12 groups of agglomerations were identified for which the need for a differentiated policy is substantiated. The policy is considered in more detail with a case study of four polar groups. The necessity of improving the legislative framework for managing labor market development in agglomerations is substantiated, which does not correspond to the challenges and needs posed by the current situation. © 2021, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.