Payment for work in Russia and across the world: a comparative analysis

The article presents the results of a comparative analysis of wage differentiation rates in Russia and 20 major countries of the world. The source of information on foreign countries was ILO publication Global Wage Report 2017/17. Wage Inequality in the Workplace, and on Russia - Rosstat data for 2008-2017. Russia is among 20 major countries of the world in the group of developing countries, but there is little information about it in the report. Dynamics of real average and minimum wages is analyzed by ILO experts in close relationship with basic economic indicators - rates of economic growth and labor productivity. In the Russian Federation real wages grow at a higher rate than economic development and labor productivity, and labor productivity growth rate lags behind economic growth. Average and minimum wages in Russia and West European countries differ by several times. A special consideration is given to the issues of difference in payment for work. The article shows that the rate and dynamics of wage inequality differ greatly in developed and developing countries. In recent years inequality in developed countries has been growing, and in most developing countries, including Russia - reducing. But the estimates of the wage differentiation rate in the Russian Federation provided by the ILO report disagree with the data from the wage survey conducted by Rosstat. The issue of wage differentiation is also considered from the point of gender inequality. This issue is of no les importance for our country too. It has been studies by our specialists from the mid-60s of the past century and by the official statistics - from the mid-1990s.