Russia will import up to 1 million workers from India by the end of this year to address the labour shortage in its industrial regions.
According to Andrey Besedin, a leader from the Ural Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the workers will be deployed primarily in the Sverdlovsk region, including the city of Yekaterinburg.
The Sverdlovsk region, a major centre for Russian heavy industry, is facing a significant shortage of skilled workers. The area is home to key manufacturing facilities, including Uralmash and Ural Wagon Zavod, the latter known for producing T-90 tanks.
While industries in the region need to ramp up production, many workers are either deployed to the military operation in Ukraine or are simply not interested in factory work.
The arrival of 1 million workers from India is part of Russia’s broader strategy to address its labour deficit. Besedin confirmed that the first wave of Indian workers began arriving in 2024. They are expected to fill various roles, including at the Kaliningrad fish processing complex "Za Rodinu," which is facing its own labour shortage.
Russia’s Ministry of Labour has predicted a national workforce shortage of 3.1 million people by 2030. To mitigate this, the government plans to increase the quota for qualified foreign workers by 1.5 times in 2025, with a focus on skilled labourers from India and other countries. In 2024, Russian industries attracted 47,000 skilled workers from non-CIS countries.
In addition to India, Russia is also considering bringing in workers from Sri Lanka and North Korea, though Besedin noted that these plans are more complex.
Despite tighter migration laws, especially after the March 2024 terrorist attack in Moscow, Russia is keen on attracting skilled foreign workers to fill labour gaps.
