The features of interregional placement of labor resources and employed population (the case of the Lipetsk oblast)

Indicators of population reproduction and employment are in the main macroeconomic indicators that are used to assess current trends prospects for economic growth in the country and its regions.The purposes of our work are to identify and systematize the features of interregional placement of labor resources and employed population in the primary areas of employment in the context of reduction in the number of people of working age in the total population of the region. The municipalities were ranked for this aim according to changes in the age structure of the population and demographic pressure, the share of labor resources and employees, and the specifics of the employment industry structure. Based on the analysis, the authors determine that the level of labor resources is still acceptable for most of the municipalities, although every fifth municipal entity of the region is “crisis” in terms of the demographic pressure of elderly people. The placement of the labor resources and employees in the region is characterized by their overconcentration in cities of regional subordination (employment cores), which defines the specifics of the industry structure of employees in the region. Despite the fact that the regional center continues maintaining the status of an industrial city, the service orientation of employment (in the tertiary sector) prevails over the industrial one, in the overall assessment of regional employment. The actual industrial employment in municipalities practically does not coincide with the common regional one. A feature of the regional employment in general is the high (20%) share of employees in the public sector. The employment reduction in budget sectors such as education and health, in the future, may have a negative impact on the training of personnel with the necessary qualifications to maintain and develop industrial employment in the region and increase the opportunities for elderly people to participate in the regional socio-economic development. The relationships revealed in the research can be used to model a system of measures within the framework of a regional employment policy.