Over 70% of Russians feel economic crisis effects – poll

(Interfax – February 24, 2015)

The share of Russians acknowledging the ongoing economic crisis has grown to 71 percent, from 62 percent in January, the Public Opinion Foundation said.

Some 14 percent of 1,500 respondents polled in 100 populated localities in 43 regions on February 14-15 claim they do not see any signs of a crisis (down from 20 percent in January), and 15 percent are undecided.

As to the manifestations of this crisis, Russians primarily mentioned growing prices and high inflation rates (45 percent), lowering living standards (11 percent), unemployment and redundancy dismissals (12 percent).

Sociologists also asked about possible transformations in family expenditures in the past six to twelve months.

Thirty-four percent of Russians said their family expenditures had grown. Some family members of 15 percent of respondents are now earning less or have lost their jobs, and 9 percent have cut down on their expenditures. In five percent of Russian families, some members are now earning more or have found a job, and four percent have earned government support or this support has grown. Thirty-eight percent said nothing of the above had happened to them.

Average monthly expenditures of Russian families on food vary from a quarter to a half of the family income (42 percent), and almost a third of families (30 percent) have to spend from a half to three-quarters of the family budget on food. Food expenditures exceed three-quarters of income in 12 percent of families and 9 percent of families spend less than a quarter of their income on food.

Fifteen percent of Russians have seen redundancy dismissals in their offices in the past two or three months, 39 percent have not, and 44 percent told sociologists they did not have a job.

Eleven percent gave an affirmative answer to the question about unpaid vacations, shorter working hours or shorter working week at places of their employment. Forty-two percent answered negatively, and 3 percent could not give an answer.

Fifteen percent of employed respondents reported salary cuts or delays in the past two or three months (38 percentsaid there were no such cases and 3 percent were undecided).