Labour markets in Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan

Labour markets are a key element of an economy as they determine what proportion of the population is employed and what areas need attention in terms of getting more of the labour force into work. The performance of the labour market reflects how well the economy is functioning as a whole. Indeed, economic growth is the sum of productivity growth and labour force growth: less of the latter makes it harder to grow faster, creating a vicious cycle of weak GDP growth, weak job growth and low labour force participation. This clearly illustrates that the labour market plays a key role in the overall growth of an economy. In this article, the authors focus on the experience of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan and how their labour markets function, concluding that the key priorities for all these governments is the proper allocation of resources, such that the quality of the labour force is enhanced and matches the precise areas of labour demand, as well as living standards enhanced and workers’ rights protected.