Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic has led to drastic economic and social disruption, increasing the need for social support and social services. The purpose of this study is to trace changes in the system of social protection and social services induced by the COVID-19 pandemic, and identify the related challenges faced by Russian regions. The objectives of this study include building a survey toolkit, conducting expert interviews with representatives of regional ministries responsible for social protection of the population and analyzing the data obtained. The methods used include expert interviews, analysis, comparison and generalization. The study explores the difficulties in organizing assistance to the population during the COVID-19 pandemic, analyzes the decisions made and the potential for making social assistance more effective, which underscores the importance of the study. The object of the research is the system of social protection of the population at the level of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. The subject of the study is the social security system’s experience during the coronavirus pandemic. The results of the study show that the pandemic has necessitated quick decision-making and completely new approaches, and exacerbated problems such as poor interagency coordination, low salaries of specialists, underdevelopment of digital technologies and people’s insufficient readiness to use remote access technologies. Nevertheless, the period of the pandemic has pushed the social protection system to develop in several aspects. First of all, this concerned the development of digital technologies for administrative purposes as well as for informing the population and providing services, and efforts to meet the needs of the population and reduce bureaucratic barriers in providing social support and social services. Еxploring opportunities for using digital technologies to improve the availability and quality of social support and social services is very important and may be considered as a subject for further research.

Abstract

The challenges for the socio-economic situation in the country have been growing since 2020. The issues of prompt, accessible and sufficient state support for different population groups affected by the current crisis come to the fore, which emphasizes the relevance of this work. The goal of the study is to analyze the prevalence of employment in the informal economy, the financial situation of workers employed in the informal economy, their social support coverage and the need for additional social assistance. The objectives of the study are to analyze the prevalence of informal employment and employment in the informal sector, including among various socio-demographic groups of workers, as well as to analyze the financial situation, social support coverage and the need for additional social assistance for informally employed workers and workers in the informal sector. The methods used include the analysis of data from the Rosstat Labor Force Survey for 2019, 2020 and 2021, as well as the analysis of data from RANEPA surveys conducted in December 2021 and September 2022. The object of the study is those employed in the informal economy in Russia. The subject of the study is the prevalence of employment in the informal economy, the financial situation of workers employed in the informal economy, the social support coverage and the need for additional social assistance. The results of the study show that the share of people working in the informal economy as their main place of work in 2019-2020 amounted to 18-19% of the total number of employees. Among those employed in the informal economy, there is a higher share of men, young workers, people with a lower level of education, employed as blue-collar workers, in the service sector, trade, agriculture and construction. Informally employed employees face increased risks of monetary and deprivation poverty, are more likely to be forced to spend savings, and have high risks of losing their jobs and reducing labor incomes. At the same time, individual entrepreneurs and the self-employed are in a better position than the working population as a whole. The results obtained contribute to the development of ideas about the financial situation of the workers employed in the informal economy.