The working day in Russia decreased for the first time in three years

The average length of the working day in January-March 2025 was 7.54 hours (7 hours and 32 minutes). For the first time in three years, it decreased by 0.1% or 4 minutes compared to the same period in 2024, according to Rosstat data.

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In recent years, the workload on employees has been growing amid a shortage of staff. Now the labor market is becoming more balanced, and the situation is changing. Among the reasons are the proliferation of flexible schedules and the popularity of remote and project work, explained Vladimir Chernov, analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

There are also more and more part—time employees in companies - according to Rosstat estimates, 3.5% of all employees worked part-time this year, compared with 3.2% in 2024. In addition, among all vacancies posted in 2025, 9% offered remote work (against 7.5% in 2024), and 7% — flexible schedule (against 5%), told in hh.ru .

"In 2025, there was a turnaround in the labor market: wage growth slowed down, and the personnel shortage became local rather than widespread. This also affects the reduction in working hours: companies are not ready to pay a lot, so they try to keep people with other privileges, for example, by simplifying the workload," said Andrei Barkhota, PhD in Economics.

According to the Rosstat report, the longest working hours are observed in fishing, passenger transport, metal ore mining and healthcare. The smallest is in water and air transport, coal mining and furniture production.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

Feeling at home: the working day in Russia has decreased for the first time in three years