Labor Protests in Russia, 2008-2011

Author(s): Petr Bizyukov
Editor(s): Stephen Aris, Matthias Neumann, Robert Orttung, Jeronim Perovic, Heiko Pleines, Hans-Henning Schröder, Aglaya Snetkov
Series: Russian Analytical Digest (RAD)
Issue: 104
Pages: 6-9
Publisher(s): Center for Security Studies (CSS), ETH Zurich; Research Centre for East European Studies, University of Bremen; Institute of History, University of Basel
Publication Year: 2011

In Russia, both the media and experts in the area of labor relations ignore the problem of labor conflicts. A key factor in explaining this situation is the current system of keeping statistics which counts only legal strikes, even though under the existing labor code it is almost impossible to carry out such a strike. Independent monitoring of labor protests, conducted according to a methodology developed by the Center for Social and Labor Rights, shows that even though the financial crisis is over, the overall number of protest actions is not dropping and the intensity of the actions (the monthly average number of strikes) is growing. At the same time, the form and causes of labor protests are changing. The lack of mechanisms for regulating labor conflicts within the framework of the enterprise means that labor protests spill out of the factory gates and merge with other types of social protest.

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