THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN WORK IS A SALARY: VCIOM: Russia Public Opinion Research Center

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THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN WORK IS A SALARY

27.04.2007

MOSCOW, April, 26, 2007. Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) submits information whether Russians are satisfied with their jobs, what do they consider the most important factor in choosing the jobs.

Currently 55% of Russians are working on a permanent job: with a contract for uncertain term (35%) or they are hired via the labor agreement, the contractor's agreement, the contract, etc. for the certain term or for conducting the certain work (12%). Less often respondents are employees hired without official registration (4%), or they run private business with use of hired employees (2%) or without (2%).

The majority of those who are currently hired are mostly satisfied with their work (72%), and in particular they are satisfied with the relations with their colleagues (93%), with management of the enterprise (79%), with the maintenance of work (74%), with sanitary and hygienic conditions and safety of work (72%), with order and timeliness of wage payment (74%). Meanwhile some are generally not satisfied with the amount of their salary (59%), and also with the work of the trade union at the enterprise (40%). For last two years the level of satisfaction with the job in general has increased, as well as with the amount (from 35 up to 38%) and timeliness of wage payment (from 77 up to 83%), and with social security (from 43 up to 47%). But the satisfaction of employees with relations with company management has declined (from 84 down to 79%) as well as the satisfaction with the work of the trade union did (from 36 down to 32%).

Respondents consider the amount of wages as the most important factor for themselves while searching for the job (74%), essentially less important factors are the social guarantees which are secured by the law (37%), opportunity for professional growth (28%), the convenient schedule, good working conditions, additional «social package» from the company and the prestige of the chosen job (21-22% each).

The desire to change the job is usually connected with low salary (30%), less often it is connected with the absence of prospects of professional growth and promotion (8%), impossibility to improve living conditions (8%), intensity of work (7%), etc. Meanwhile half of the interviewed identify that they would not like to change their current job.

For last three years the majority of respondents (67%) did not get any vocational training. Only 15% of the respondents have improved their qualification, 7% were trained an adjacent profession, 4% were retrained to get a new kind of profession, 5% have gone through primary vocational training. In 2004 the situation was approximately the same.

In comparison with 2004 the amount of those who identifies that for last 12 months on their basic job there were delays in the wage payment for more than a month has decreased (from 19% down to 14%), as well as the labor conflicts between employees and management of the enterprise (from 14% down to 9%), conflicts between employees (from 12% down to 8%). Practically with the same frequency as back then there were such situations, as change of the proprietor or a form of ownership (8%), sending employees on an unpaid vacation in connection with the absence of work (7%), mass cut down of employees (6%) or threat of such cut down (6%), transfer of employees into the part-time job or incomplete working week by the initiative of company management (5%), etc.

The high wage level is more important than social guarantees and stability of a position, as 57% of respondents consider (against 36%). The observance of the labor rights enforced by the law is more important than personal agreements with the employer, as 60% of respondents believe (against 34%), and for three years the amount of this opinion supporters has increased (back then there were 55% against 41%). Businessmen today cannot run fair business, otherwise they would go bankrupt, as 53% of respondents identify (against 26%), three years ago greater number of the interviewed thought so (62%).

All-Russia opinion poll was conducted by VCIOM, April, 21-22, 2007. 1600 respondents were interviewed in 153 population centers of 46 regions of Russia. The statistical error doesn't not exceed 3.4%.

Do you currently have a job? If yes, what conditions were you employed on?
	April 2004.	July 2005.	April 2007.
I do not work	45	47	45
I am hired on a permanent job (with the contract for uncertain term)	34	32	35
I am hired via the labor agreement, the contractor's agreement, the contract, etc. for the certain term or for conducting the certain work	12	13	12
I am hired on the basis of the verbal understanding (without official registration)	5	3	4
I am self-employed at my own enterprise, a farm, I am an entrepreneur, I do business with the use of hired employees	2	2	2
I am engaged in individual labor activity, private entrepreneurship without use of hired employees	1	2	2
Another	1	1	0
Difficult to answer	0	0	0

Speaking of your basic work, are you satisfied with... (One response for each point; % of those who are employed)
		Generally satisfied	Generally unsatisfied	Difference of positive and negative responses	Difficult to answer
Your current job in general?	2005	69	31	38	0
Your current job in general?	2007	72	26	46	2
Amount of wages?	2005	35	65	-30	0
Amount of wages?	2007	38	59	-21	3
Order, the form, timeliness of payment of wages?	2005	77	22	55	1
Order, the form, timeliness of payment of wages?	2007	83	15	68	2
The maintenance of the work, your job functions?	2005	74	25	49	1
The maintenance of the work, your job functions?	2007	74	24	50	2
The organizing, sanitary and hygienic conditions and safety of work?	2005	74	25	49	1
	2007	72	25	47	3
Opportunities of promotion, career growth?	2005	49	44	5	7
Opportunities of promotion, career growth?	2007	47	44	3	9
Opportunities of conversion training, improvement of professional skill?	2005	51	42	9	7
	2007	50	41	9	9
The social guarantees from the company (health services, the organization of vacation, etc.)?	2005	43	54	-11	3
	2007	47	47	0	6
Relations with your colleagues?	2005	92	7	85	1
Relations with your colleagues?	2007	93	5	88	2
Relations with management, company direction?	2005	84	14	70	2
Relations with management, company direction?	2007	79	16	63	5
Work of the trade union, other employee organization at the company?	2005	36	42	-6	22
	2007	32	40	-8	28

If you were to find a job now, what would be the most important factor for you? (Up to three responses; % of those who are employed)
	2004.	2007.
Opportunity of professional success (correspondence of work with your qualification, professional growth)	23	28
The prestige of the job	16	21
That work did not demand excessive efforts, high intensity of work	9	8
Granting the social guarantees stipulated by the law (paid vacations, hospital days, various payments and compensations)	33	37
Additional «social package» from the enterprise (a polyclinic, vacation permits, a kindergarten, habitation)	14	21
Official employment (labor contract or transfer under the order)	9	11
Pension deductions from the salary (income)	14	9
Opportunity of establishment of good relations with collective, the management	6	5
Amount of wages	74	74
Convenient conditions, convenient work schedule and that it is convenient to reach the place.	21	22
Good working conditions (workplace, equipment)	18	22
Difficult to answer	2	1

Would you like to change the job? If so, what is your intention mainly connected with? (Up to three responses; % of those who are employed)
	2004.	2007.
Uninteresting job	4	5
There is no hope for professional growth and promotion	7	8
Work mismatches the profession	5	6
Bad conditions and the organization of work	7	5
The work is too intense and tiresome.	7	7
Low wages	30	30
Delays in wages payment	6	5
Bad relations with colleagues, with management	3	1
Impossibility to receive habitation, to improve living conditions	6	8
Fears of being not able to provide decent pension with the present amount of wages	4	5
Fear that the company will get shut down and I will get fired	3	4
Domestic reasons	3	3
The desire to run my own private business (enterprise)	3	2
I do not want to change my job	49	50
Difficult to answer	2	4

Have you gone through any vocational training during the last three years? If so, what kind of training was it? (Unlimited number of responses; % of those who are employed)
	2004.	2007.
No I have not	68	67
I have got primary vocational training (for those who did not have any professional skills)	4	5
I was trained an adjacent profession (close to my former profession)	5	7
I was retrained to get a new profession	4	4
I have gone through the course of improving my qualification	18	15
Difficult to answer	3	3

Have the following situations occurred at your main work place during the last 12 months? (Identify all of which occurred; % of those who are employed)
	2004	2007
Delay in wages payment for more than a month	19	14
Sending employees on an unpaid vacation in connection with the absence of work	8	7
Transfer of employees into the part-time job or incomplete working week by the initiative of company management	4	5
Mass cut down of employees	6	6
Threat of mass cut down of employees	9	6
Change of the proprietor (from one person to another) or a form of ownership (from state to private)	8	8
Conflicts between employees and management	14	9
Conflicts between employees	12	8
Conflicts between management and shareholders	3	2
Conflict between the company and the state	3	1
None of listed above	52	62
Difficult to answer	4	2

Which of the statements below do you agree with the most? (One response for each pair of statements; % of those who are employed)
	2004	2007
A.
The most important thing in work is a high level of wages, even at absence of social guarantees	60	57
The main things in work are social guarantees, stability of a workplace, even at rather low level of earnings	36	36
Difficult to answer	4	7
B.
The observance of the labor rights stipulated by the law is more important.	55	60
The observance of my personal agreement with the employer is more important	41	34
Difficult to answer	4	6
C.
It is possible to run fair business today	22	26
It is not possible to run fair business. If one does so, his business will go bankrupt	62	53
Difficult to answer	16	21

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