Ending Use of Migrant Labor Would Lead to Economic Collapse of Moscow ‘Under the Guise of Populism, Sobyanin Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Dec. 26 – While everyone can agree that “in an idea world,” Russia could “do without migrants,” Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin told his city council, ending the use of migrant labor “under the guide of populism” would quickly lead to the collapse of key branches of the economy of the Russian capital.

            At present, he says, the city has a labor shortage approaching half a million people and needs immigrants to fill the gap. If the influx of migrant workers were to be stopped or reversed, that would “immediately affect prices, construction rates, logistics, and ultimately, the standard of living of Muscovites” (asia24.media/news/sobyanin-otkaz-ot-migrantov-vyzovet-kollaps-v-ekonomike-moskvy/).

            According to Sobyanin, “the task of the authorities is not to restrict immigration as such but to create a manageable, transparent and safe system” as “bringing order does not mean prohibiting but rather moving away from spontaneity, closing channels of illegal employment, strengthening control over compliance with Russian law, and preventing attempts at speculation on inter-ethnic and inter-religious grounds.”

            And he said that given that the labor shortage in the capital is likely to grow even if the economy stabilizes. Instead, “the need for labor will only increase” and “to ignore this reality would lead the city to economic collapse under the guise of populism” and thus be counterproductive.

            Sobyanin’s words are perhaps the clearest indication that the Russian authorities generally and not just the Moscow mayor are now interested in reducing the temperature of debates about migration, debates that in many places have triggered ethnic and religious conflicts that the Kremlin doesn’t want to see emerge.