Wages for Russian truck drivers are rising faster than those in any other profession this year, the Vedomosti business daily reported Tuesday, citing the recruitment website Headhunter and the trucking association Avtogruzex.
Median truck driver wages reached 131,000 rubles ($1,450) per month in January-June 2024, a 74% increase compared to the same time last year.
Demand for truck drivers was reportedly highest in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don and Novosibirsk.
Trucking firms and industry experts who spoke to Vedomosti linked the wage spike to a combination of factors including higher transport volumes on Russian roads, the high cost of commercial driver’s licenses, demand for truck drivers in occupied Ukraine and the departure from Russia of many migrants who typically work those jobs.
According to the cited data, trucking was the only profession out of the 174 listed occupations where wage growth topped 60%.
Trucking is nonetheless the 23rd highest-paid job in Russia, with IT sector jobs dominating the top five ranking with monthly salaries ranging from 180,000 to 250,000 rubles ($1,900-$2,700).
Avtogruzex President Vadim Filatov projects truck driver wages to increase by another 10%-30% by the end of the year.