This article analyzes the qualitative characteristics of labor potential in Russia. It concludes that the decline in the working age population, which has begun recently, hampers the reproduction of labor resources in Russia. The factor impeding the development of labor resources is the low remuneration of labor, which, given the high quality of formal education of working population, causes the degradation of their labor potential. The study shows that the Russian labor market is characterized by one of the global problems – gender wage inequality. The authors compare several countries by the main indicators characterizing the reproduction of labor resources. They review factors such as low wages, low labor productivity, and the quality of professional training. They also analyze the implementation of several indicators set out in the presidential decrees of May 07, 2012 and point out what has been actually done with regard to human potential quality enhancement. The article concludes that the Russian economy is unable to move along the innovative path without the transformation of the Russian workers and improving their quality; the latter is impossible without overcoming the phenomenon of the ‘working poor’, which to a great extent destabilizes the socio-economic development of the country
Keywords
public health, labor potential, national security, labor recourses, remuneration of labor