Prospects for reintegration of shift workers into the labor market of their home region (on the example of the Republic of Mordovia)

The article considers shift work on the example of returning labor migrants in the Volga Region. The study aims at assessing prospects for reintegrating shift workers into the labor market of their region of permanent residence. The study combined quantitative and qualitative approaches. The authors conducted an online survey (N=434) of residents of Mordovia working on a shift basis (mainly in Moscow and the Moscow Region - 79 %); the questionnaire focused on the key parameters of employment, income, and migration attitudes. Semi-formalized interviews were conducted with 24 shift workers (19 men and 5 women aged 22-60) on subjective factors of labor mobility and possibilities of return. The key obstacles to the return of shift workers were identified: a significant difference in wages (the average salary of shift workers is twice as high as the regional average); established practices of seasonal work as a social norm; psychological adaptation to a specific work schedule (“free time trap”). Most seasonal workers (82 %) are satisfied with their current employment - stable income (74 %) and flexible schedule (50 %), so only 15 % consider a return, mainly due to age or family circumstances, i.e. there are obvious limitations to the large-scale reintegration of shift workers into the labor market of their region. Shift employment remains a rational strategy for adapting to regional imbalances in the labor market, and traditional measures to stimulate return (job creation) are insufficient without taking into account labor expectations of shift workers. The region should focus on the hidden economic benefits of shift employment: money transfers, support for local businesses due to consumer demand generated by shift workers, long-term investments in the regional human capital, etc.