Who will now be allowed to work remotely: The State Duma and the Ministry of Finance introduce new rules

The State Duma has presented a list of positions that may be banned for remote work for those who have gone abroad. These are specialists serving state information systems (GIS), systems of critical information infrastructure facilities (CII facilities) and the turnover of personal data in companies.

Do IT specialists need to say goodbye to the remote work?

The full list of specialities prohibited for remote work is contained in the draft resolution of the State Duma, which was prepared following the results of the "government hour" with the head of the Ministry of Finance Maksut Shadayev.

The State Information systems, in particular, included the unified portal of public services (EPSU), the unified Identification and authentication System (ESIA), the unified information system in the field of procurement (zakupki.gov.ru ). Those who are connected with a critical information structure will also not be able to work remotely.

According to the law, the objects of the critical information structure may include automated control systems operating in the field of healthcare, science, transport, communications, energy, banking and other areas of the financial market, as well as in the fuel and energy complex, nuclear energy, defense and chemical industries. The critical information structure will also include all individual entrepreneurs associated with these industries. That is, the list of potentially banned "remotes" is quite large. How will this affect the labor market?

"This decision, if adopted, will not have a serious impact on the spread of the remote format of work in IT as a whole, since only a narrow group of IT specialists serving state information systems can fall under its action. At the same time, for cybersecurity specialists in the corporate sector, remote work is not welcome anyway: employers indicated it in only 3% of vacancies for them in 2022. For all other IT areas that are not related to the security loop, remote work is preserved. In February 2023, exactly half of all vacancies on hh.ru with a permanent remote format of work, IT is placed from IT companies", - Maria Ignatova, Head of the Research service, commented on NI hh.ruInterestingly, the Ministry of Finance, where they initially stated that they opposed the ban on remote work of IT specialists who went abroad, has recently changed its position.

"We strongly recommend that employers take a very careful approach to analyzing the risks of remote work of employees who administer critical applications, as well as information security systems", - the ministry told NI.

Savings plus the opportunity to earn extra money and sleep

At the same time, the demand for remote work in Russia is not decreasing.

About a quarter of companies in the Russian Federation plan to leave almost all of their employees on a remote work format, despite the lifting of restrictions on coronavirus. This is evidenced by the results of a study by the international recruitment company Hays, RIA Novosti reports.
According to experts, 23% of Russian companies will continue to work completely remotely in the near future. Most organizations report that the process has already been built, so the whole team will continue to work remotely.

What is so attractive about a remote woman?

"Firstly, the business itself has adapted well to this format - it allows you to reduce the cost of renting and maintaining offices, teams are used to working distributed. The decision to return everyone to the office without providing for a hybrid format can negatively affect the efficiency and loyalty of employees. From the point of view of the workers themselves, according to the autumn survey hh.ru , 46% of respondents primarily consider vacancies offering work remotely. Judging by the polls, it turned out that one in five liked this format even before the pandemic. Speaking about the format in which applicants work most effectively, 54% indicated a hybrid format, 35% - completely remotely, 11% - in the office. 2-3 days is the optimal mode of the hybrid format of work. That's what 64% of those who went into the pandemic to be removed said, but now they work in a hybrid", - Maria Ignatova, head of the research service, told NI hh.ruJudging by the polls, "remote" saves time and money on the way to work (79% of respondents think so hh.ru ), leaves more time for sleep, rest and communication with loved ones (38%), gives a more cozy and comfortable environment for work (34%).

These are the top 3 main advantages of working in a remote format. Among the disadvantages: lack of movement, decreased overall activity (42%), no separation of work and personal time (35%), no communication with people (20%).

The service for the selection of highly paid work Superjob, in turn, highlights several "advantages" of remote work. So, "remote" employees earn one and a half times more often than those who work on the territory of the employer. 22% of "remote workers" admit that they have a side job today. It is curious that those who work on the "remote", according to Superjob, sleep on average an hour longer than those who work on the territory of the employer.

Programmers, managers and even Disney - for the "remote"

Employers also see their advantages in remote work.

"For the incomplete February 2023 on hh.ru over 65 thousand vacancies with remote work have been published, which is 32% more than in the same period last year. Also in February, 680 thousand applicants are looking for remote work only – the top three for such a request include customer service and sales managers, programmers, developers, designers", - explains the head of the research service hh.ru Maria Ignatova.

The choice in favor of remote work is made not only in Russia.

A desperate struggle between companies and their employees for a remote work schedule has recently flared up in the world. Corporations are increasing pressure on employees, trying to drive them back to their offices, but the staff responds with angry petitions and increasingly "votes with their feet" for a more convenient schedule. Recently, more than 2,300 Disney employees signed a petition addressed to the company's CEO Bob Iger calling on them to abandon plans to return them to their jobs from March 1 of this year. The petition states that such a policy will have unintended consequences that will cause long-term damage to the company.