MOSCOW, 7 February 2022. VCIOM presents the findings of survey on the highest paying professions.
Politician is considered to be the highest paying job by 19% of Russians; 13% choose IT specialist and entrepreneur; 11% opt for lawyers. Every tenth respondent thinks that workers employed in banking, oil and gas and healthcare get the highest salaries (10%, each).
Over the recent fifteen years more respondents consider the following careers to be the highest paying: IT jobs (+9 p.p., 4% in 2006 vs 13% in 2021), jobs in oil and gas and energy sectors (+7 p.p., 3% in 2006 vs 10% in 2021), healthcare (+5 p.p., 5% in 2006 vs 10% in 2021), transport careers (+3 p.p.,0% in 2006 vs 3% in 2021) and management jobs (+5 p.p., 4% in 2006 vs 19% in 2021).
Views regarding the following careers have not changed much: sales and service workers* (+0 p.p., 5% in 2006 vs 5% in 2021), educational workers (+1 p.p., 1% in 2006 vs 2% in 2021), construction workers (+2 p.p., 3% in 2006 vs 5% in 2021), welding operators, lathe operators, metal workers and electricians (+2 p.p., 1% in 2006 vs 3% in 2021).
The folllwing jobs are less likely to be considered as the highest paying: legal jobs (−12 p.p., 23% in 2006 vs 11% in 2021), entrepreneurial jobs (−7 p.p., 20% in 2006 vs 13% in 2021), economic jobs (−7 p.p., 12% in 2006 vs 5% in 2021), civil service (−5 p.p., 7% in 2006 vs 2% in 2021) and banking (−4 p.p., 14% in 2006 vs 10% in 2021).
* In previous years, “sales workers” and “service sector workers” answer options were combined.
Russian nationwide VCIOM-Sputnik survey was conducted September 12, 2021. A total of 1,600 of Russians aged 18 and older took part in the survey. Results are based on telephone interviews. Stratified dual-frame random sample based on a complete list of Russian landline and mobile phone numbers was used. The data were weighted according to selection probability and social and demographic characteristics. The margin of error at a 95% confidence level does not exceed 2.5%. In addition to sampling error, minor changes to the wording of questions and different circumstances arising during the fieldwork can introduce bias into the survey
What careers are the highest paying today? Please cite three the highest paying ones. (open-ended question, up to 3 answers, % of total respondents) | ||||||||
| Total respondents | Men | Women | Aged 18-24 | 25-34 | 35-44 | 45-59 | 60 + |
Political field | 19 | 22 | 17 | 21 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 15 |
IT sector (IT technologies, information protection, Internet) | 13 | 16 | 11 | 17 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 9 |
Entrepreneur / businessman | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 11 | 11 | 15 |
Legal jobs (laywer, attorney, prosecutor) | 11 | 8 | 15 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 |
Bank sector | 10 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 18 |
Healthcare | 10 | 5 | 14 | 7 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 |
Oil and gas / enegy sector / extraction of mineral resources | 10 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 13 |
Senior manager / head / director | 9 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 9 | 6 |
Commercial sector (sales personnel, marketing specialist) | 5 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 6 |
Economist / financier | 5 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 10 | 3 | 3 |
Miltary personnel (including police, Emercom,etc) | 5 | 6 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 |
Construction worker | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 5 |
Internet-related jobs (bloggers, etc) | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
Blue-collar jobs (weldor, locksmith, lathe operator, electrician, etc.) | 3 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
Manager | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
Transport sector worker (driver, pilot) | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
Civil servant | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
Creative jobs (artists, performers, designers) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, farmer, mechanizer) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
Service sector worker (beauty specialist, hairdresser, cook) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
Educational worker | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
Engineer / technical engineer (different sectors) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
Accountant | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
Other | 9 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 8 |
Don’t know | 26 | 24 | 27 | 25 | 23 | 22 | 27 | 30 |
What careers are the highest paying today? (closed-ended question, % of total respondents, nor more than 3 answers, answers of at least 1% of respondents, % of total respondents) | |||||
| 2021 | 2018 | 2012 | 2009 | 2006 |
Political field | 19 | 13 | - | - | - |
Internet-related jobs (bloggers, etc) | 13 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Entrepreneur / businessman | 13 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 20 |
Legal jobs (lawyer, attorney, prosecutor | 11 | 15 | 17 | 14 | 23 |
Oil and gas / enegy sector / extraction of mineral resources | 10 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 3 |
Healthcare | 10 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 5 |
Bank sector | 10 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 14 |
Senior manager / head / director | 9 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
Commercial sector (sales worker, beauty specialist, hairdresser, cook)* | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
Service sector worker (beauty specialist, hairdresser, cook) | 2 | ||||
Economist / financier | 5 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 12 |
Miltary personnel (including police, Emercom,etc) | 5 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3 |
Construction worker | 5 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
Blue-collar jobs (weldor, locksmith, lathe operator, electrician, etc.) | 3 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
Internet-related jobs (bloggers, etc) | 3 | - | - | - |
|
Manager | 3 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 5 |
Transport sector worker (driver, pilot) | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Public servant | 2 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
Creative jobs (artists, performersm designers) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
Accountant | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
Engineer / technical engineer (different sectors) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | - |
Educational worker | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Agricultural worker (agrotechnician, farmer, mechanizer) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Other | 9 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
Don’t know
| 26 | 25 | 19 | 28 | 24 |
* In previous years, “sales workers” and “service sector workers” answer options were combined.