State Duma deputies intend to bar migrants who have not passed the state exam in Russian from entering Russia. The corresponding bill was submitted for discussion last week to the lower house by deputies from the A Just Russia faction, Alexander Krutov and Nikolai Leonov. Amendments to paragraph 8 of Article 13.1 of the already existing law 'On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation' oblige labor migrants arriving in Russia for a period exceeding 90 days to study the Russian language. As reported in Alexander Krutov's reception office, the only new thing in the bill will be one paragraph requiring labor migrants to submit, along with other documents, a certificate of proficiency in Russian to the territorial executive authorities.
The bill also concerns migrants from CIS countries. If a person from a former Soviet republic who learned Russian in the Soviet past comes to Russia, it will be enough for them to confirm their knowledge before an examination commission within 30 days. 'Now a different generation of foreigners is coming to Russia, who have lived without the Soviet Union for 10-15 years, and we cannot make allowances just because they are from former Soviet republics. Even if they know Russian at the level of communicating with a dictionary, they can improve their language here or undergo training at a school at the embassy in their homeland before leaving for work,' the deputy's assistant said.
According to the deputy himself, there are currently many methods for learning Russian as a foreign language, but it is necessary to introduce a multi-level teaching system. There will be six levels: for different types of work, knowledge of a certain minimum number of words is required.
For example, for sleeper layers, salespeople, cleaners, a basic level of language knowledge and a minimal vocabulary of 200-300 lexical units are sufficient – to understand the essence of the boss's instructions. For working in an office with a Russian-speaking team and computers with Russian-language programs, one needs to master at least the second level and 300-500 Russian words. The most difficult level, as Deputy Krutov explained, is the sixth – for those aiming for a managerial position. In addition to fluency in Russian at the native speaker level, certification in the history, religion, and culture of Russia, as well as law, is mandatory. 'So that there is peace and everyone understands each other,' Alexander Krutov explained.
The deputy argued the need to amend the law by saying that newcomers to Russia should not only get jobs but also adapt to society. 'On the territory of our country, one must live in accordance with our culture and history, while of course not forgetting their own traditions. A person who does not know the language cannot communicate, cannot work in a team, with documents, machinery, cannot understand the demands placed on them or defend their rights. Often such people create criminal enclaves and become victims of criminal gangs, trusting leaders who manipulate them. In relation to those who speak the language, the level of xenophobia decreases, and they fit into the labor market more organized,' the deputy noted.
The legislators propose that the costs of language courses be borne by employers or by the state, which is 'interested in attracting high-quality labor.' Many employers have already reacted positively, the deputy cited his personal experience of negotiations on this issue. However, the author of the bill added that some future bosses are already finding ways to recover 'production costs.' For example, deducting training expenses from the worker's future salary. The deputy also did not deny that many employers will try to circumvent the amended law, just as they ignore the current one. 'It cannot be denied that we have many illegal workers. However, the law provides for liability for such labor relations – a fine. They will also be fined if the candidate's package of documents, despite having all necessary certificates, does not include a certificate of Russian language proficiency,' Alexander Krutov said.
The educational program should be developed by the government jointly with the Ministry of Education and Science and the Federal Migration Service, the author of the bill believes. Legislators do not expect problems with the educational process, as centers for teaching Russian as a foreign language, which have licenses and issue certificates to graduates, are already operating in various regions of Russia.
Earlier, Deputy Krutov's initiative was already supported by Deputy Head of the FMS Vyacheslav Postavnin, Chairman of the Federation Council Sergei Mironov, and the Human Rights Ombudsman in Russia Vladimir Lukin. However, many experts believe that the bill bodes nothing good and doubt its necessity. For example, press secretary of the company Finam, Vladislav Kochetkov, believes that the adoption of the bill will immediately provoke the creation of numerous parasitic firms engaged in the shadow business of issuing fake certificates.
'Today in Russia, for example, it is not a problem to get legal registration, residency through unofficial structures. Any company that does not want its foreign employee to take the Russian language exam will buy him this certificate bypassing any examination commission. Of course, it is desirable that a foreigner working in our country knows Russian, but most enterprises somehow solve the issues of communication between the migrant and other members of the Russian-speaking team. In our company, for example, foreigners hold some managerial positions, and their subordinates know English. It can be said that the entire Russian-speaking team adapts to one manager – because he is truly a valuable employee,' Vladislav Kochetkov noted.
Elena Gorlanova.
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