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37ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИЕ НАУКИ
MIGRANTS IN RUSSIA: THE DEGREE OF SEVERITY
OF THE PROBLEM AND SOLUTIONS 1 2 Korotkova I.B.% Gavrilova N.O.2
1Korotkova Irina Borisovna - Student;
2Gavrilova Natalya Olegovna - Student, DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WORK, INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND MASS COMMUNICATIONS, BELGOROD NATIONAL RESEARCH UNIVERSITY, BELGOROD
Abstract: this article analyses the situation of migrants in modern Russia, by the example of a sociological research conducted in 5 cities of the Privolzhsky Federal district. Identifies the main difficulties of adaptation of migrants to their host by the Russian society and possible ways of solving their problems. Shown to meet some of the myths about migrant workers and their real importance for the Russian economy and demographics. Considered foreign experience and to evaluate its positive and negative aspects in the formulation of state migration policy of Russia.
Keywords: migrants, adaptation, integration, migration policy.
This article is dedicated to the problem of the migrants' situation in modern Russia. The purpose of the work is some data analysis of sociological research, which was hold under the guidance of the PhD in Sociology, Professor, the Head of the sociological laboratory of the National research University "Higher school of Economics" Irina Leonidovna Sizova. The object of the study was migrants who came to Russia legally and settled in the five major regions of the Volga Federal district (Nizhny Novgorod, Saratov, Orenburg region, Moldova and the Republic of Chuvashia). The objectives of the study were: 1) exploring of the national, ethnic, demographic, socio-cultural composition of migrants and immigrants in these areas; 2) identifying of the willingness of migrants and immigrants from different categories for integration into the host community. The study included 3 questionnaire surveys of migrants (100+100+1000 respondents) in 5 cities of the Volga Federal district (Nizhny Novgorod, Saratov, Saransk, Orenburg, Cheboksary). Persons who were training at seminars held by the "Volga migration center" took part in 2 small surveys (100+100). The large-scale survey (1000 people) involved migrants from 5 designated regional centers of the Volga Federal district. The respondents were foreign citizens regardless of their legal status, countries of origin, ethnicity. Methods were used to construct the sample such as "snowball" and one-hundred percent basis survey. First of all, it should be noted that the migration growth of the population in Russia is an important factor in the present and future development of the country. According to the 2010 census, between 1992 and 2010, migrants compensated for 60% of the natural population decline in Russia [2; a 263]. The positive effects of the migration movement results also include the slowdown in the population rate of aging, the inflation containment, the housing construction development, the skilled labor replacement, and the increa sing of employee's number.
Migration potential in Russia during that period of time, with some exceptions, accumulated "naturally": after the Soviet Union collapse there was not any significant need to build a policy of migrants and immigrants attracting to the country. That situation, despite the deterioration of the economic situation in Russia in 2014-2016, remains to nowadays: the country is an attractive place for the mass arrival of temporary migrants from many countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus, and, at the same time, is a transit point for the movement of migrants in the Western direction. According to the 2010 census, the most numerous nationalities among migrants in Russia are (in descending order): the Ukrainians,
the Armenians, the Kazakhs, the Azeri, the Belarusians, the Uzbek, the Tajik, the Georgians, the Moldovans, the Kyrgyz [3; c. 14]. Most of the modern migrants' representatives in Russia are temporary residents. The opinion that the new generation of migrants has lower education and skills, including poor knowledge of the Russian language is dominated among Russian experts and the population. One of important features is the increasing of non-ethnic migrants' number in Russia [4; c. 4]. Due to the imperfection of migration legislation, migration often becomes illegal, which leads to a number of serious consequences such as: criminalization of migration traffic, violations of labor and social legislation against migrants by the host community, the social vulnerability development in migrant groups (poverty, disease, deviation) with all the ensuing problems for Russian society. Initially, this "social capital" of migrants is a serious obstacle to their integration into the receiving social environment. There is a consensus about the imperfection of Russian legislation with regard to migrants in Russian public and expert circles. On the one hand, it does not meet the needs of economic, social and demographic development [2; c. 265].
Plans to improve the education of children, as well as marriage with a representative of the local community are probably an indicator of the migrants ' intentions seriousness to integrate into the host environment. In general, the willingness for integration can be expressed in the intention to educate their children in Russia, to live in it forever, the presence of positive and permanent contacts and ties with local residents and the lack of close ties and relations with the country of origin. Socialization in the sending society is a great importance for the migrant's willingness to integrate into the receiving community. If socio-cultural differences are small, secondary socialization in the host community will be faster and more successful. Significant aspects are also the personal characteristics, his migration experience, personal biography, social and psychological components. The willingness for integration is enhanced in solving urgent problems such as legalization, inclusion in the labor market and solving housing problems. In Russia, this is a significant problem, so often migrants' resort to the help of intermediaries, which can be relatives, friends and acquaintances, fellow countrymen, religious non-profit organizations. "In the absence or weakness of public policies for the migrant's integration, non-state actors take over the functions of migrants adaptation and integration. These are civil society institutions, human rights organizations that provide migrants with various kinds of consulting and legal services, working groups, migrant associations, diasporas, ethnic business. Finally, these are shadow structures, to a large extent contributing to the fact that migration (primarily temporary labour migration) is overwhelmingly unregistered / illegal in Russia " [3; c. 11].
According to the sociological study conducted under the Head of the sociological laboratory of the National research University "Higher school of Economics" I. L. Sizova in 5 cities of the Volga Federal district (Nizhny Novgorod, Saratov, Saransk, Orenburg, Cheboksary), almost all of surveyed migrants came from the CIS countries. In the Volga Federal district they are mainly Uzbek, Tajik, Moldovans, Azeri, Ukrainians, Armenians and Georgians. Only 5% of them do not work and live at the expense of maintenance by relatives. The other ones are employed. The average monthly earnings of migrants, according to the estimates of the respondents, are presented in graph No. 2. Taking into account the fact that the average nominal accrued salary in the Volga Federal district (PFD) for January-April 2015 amounted to 24,4 thousand rubles per month, it can be argued with some caution that migrants working in the PFD are not much different from local residents in the real money that they are able to provide [1; c.19]. The problems faced by migrants in Russia deserve serious attention. The study showed that the difficulties are observed in almost all areas of their life, with the exception of improving their Russian language knowledge. Especially many problems accumulate in the field of health, housing, job search, vulnerability to dismissal. After some time in Russia, there are problems that migrants did not have after their arrival, it is a persecution by law enforcement agencies and criminal elements.
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The survey data presented in graph 3 show that the immigrants' adaptation is quite difficult, many current problems (employment, wages, housing problems, health) are not solved, there is a keen sense of alienation, there is a longing for the native country. And this despite the fact that 35% of the surveyed migrants live in Russia with their families, and 18% live with their parents. Migrants are also discouraged by the reluctance of local Russian residents to come into contact with them, while 79% of migrants would like to meet and communicate with them more often [1; с. 24-25]. As most of the people surveyed are estimated to be labour migrants, the most pressing problem for them is employment assistance. Despite the fact that the majority of migrants declare themselves as healthy people, medical care is also in demand. The remaining migrants' needs are roughly equally represented and include a wide range of issues, from assistance in training to the various consultations needed by people who are in a foreign country. Protection from extortion by criminal elements, assistance in establishing contacts and in cooperation with state structures are also of great importance.
References
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