Employment Forms and the Creative Industry: Issues of Interaction and Public Support

Currently, there are formal, informal, and platform-based employment. The purpose of this study is to analyze the trends of their changes and their impact on the development of the creative industry, taking into account the use of government support measures. The hypothesis is that in order to develop the creative industry, it is advisable to expand government support measures, primarily in the formal sector of the economy. The object of the study is the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, with a detailed analysis of the experience of Ugra as a territory that includes platform-based employment in its socio-economic development strategy. The methodology is based on the analysis of descriptive statistics from the 2016–2024 sample labor force survey and data from the official websites of Ugra. There has been an increase in the proportion of people employed in the formal sector of the economy. The study has identified the commitment of individuals to specific forms of employment. Compared to the normal distribution, the regional differentiation of platform employment is skewed towards lower values. The gross value added of the creative economy is more dependent on the formal sector, while the informal sector is more dependent on platform employment on freelance platforms. A detailed analysis of the Ugra experience has shown the effectiveness of using specially developed regional digital platforms. Currently, there is a transition from a model of increasing digital tools for promoting self-employment to a model of reducing self-employment based on government support for the creative industry in the formal sector of the economy. The effectiveness of this experience allows us to recommend it for replication.