Labour Shortage as a Factor of Institutional Change: Strategies of Russian Employers under Structural Imbalances

Abstract

The structural imbalances of the Russian labor market (2022–2024), marked by record-low unemployment and a persistent labour shortage, bring the analysis of employers’ adaptive strategies to the forefront. The predominance of macroeconomic research leaves subjective interpretations of the labour deficit and actual managerial practices in the shadows, creating a gap in understanding micro‑institutional adaptation mechanisms. The study aims to reconstruct employers’ evaluative judgments and behavioral responses as key labour market actors. The empirical basis comprises 43 expert interviews with representatives from industry, IT, services, trade, construction, and recruitment agencies across seven Russian regions, conducted in 2024. The findings show that the labour shortage is perceived as a long‑term structural constraint driven by demographic decline, institutional barriers, and the mismatch between education and production. In response, organizations are evolving from extensive recruitment toward intensive retention and reproduction of personnel, expanding social benefits, introducing flexible employment arrangements, setting up corporate training centres, and influencing educational standards. The research demonstrates that the labour deficit acts not only as a constraint but also as a driver of institutional changes that redistribute the functions of personnel training between business and the state. In addition, a value shift in favour of non‑financial employment factors has been registered.