Page 51 - RusRPTFeb19

4.5 Labour and income
4.5.1 Labour market, unemployment dynamics
Unemployment remains at record lows. ILO standard measure of unemployment was unchanged at 4.8 in December.
4.5.2 Income dynamics
Russia’s real disposable income decreased 0.2% in 2018, the Federal State Statistics Service said in a statement on January 25, reporting preliminary data.
The decline marks the fifth year in a row that real incomes have fallen,
despite moderate economic growth and record high trade and budget surpluses. Russia is currently running an austere policy to sanction-proof the economy.
The declines in previous years were: 2014: -0.7%, 2015: -3.2%, 2016: - 5.8%, 2017: -1.7%, 2018: -0.2%. The real disposable income excludes taxes and other mandatory payments and its performance is adjusted for inflation. The 2018 dynamics was calculated with a one-time pension increase in January 2017. Without the payment, the real disposable income would have risen by 0.3% in 2018.
The average monthly wage rose 9.9% on the year to RUB43,400 in 2018. The real monthly wage grew 6.8%.
Real incomes of Russians fell for the fifth year in a row in 2018. The real incomes of Russians in 2018 decreased by 0.2%, according to Rosstat. Contrary to government expectations, 2018 was the fifth year of continuous decline in real incomes of the population.
Russia’s real disposable income fall takes into account the lump sum payment to pensioners of RUB5000 made in January 2017, which
51 RUSSIA Country Report February 2019 www.intellinews.com