3. How a fortnight of New Year’s holidays hurts the Russian economy
What happened:
Russia is still waking up from its long New Year celebration. The official holiday is at least 10 days long — this year, from Dec. 29 to Jan. 9. In fact, the entire country stops its normal working schedule from about Dec. 20 to Jan. 15.
Western-oriented Russians love speculating about the economic damage the long holidays cause. Every year, FBK consulting estimates the negative economic impact of the break at around 1.5 percent of GDP.
The solution, it might seem, would be for Russia to just cancel the holidays to boost the economy. But the figures say that the main problem is not the long break itself. On average, Russians rank among the world’s top-5 for hours spent at work. It is their low labor productivity that sends these hours into the trash can.
Why the world should care:
If you tried to get in touch with Russians to do business after Dec. 29 and received no response, you shouldn’t be surprised. For better results, try send a reminder next week.