In 2018, the Belarusian government continued applying administrative methods in an attempt to control the labor market, particularly to regulate wages, employment, birth rate and migration, although such efforts have already proved to be ineffective. The annual average monthly wage did not reach the target of BYN 1,000. The proportion of the employed in the working-age population did not increase; the number of Belarusian labor emigrants continued to grow, and the birth rate was in decline. Administrative barriers diminished labor market flexibility, slowed down inter-sectoral and regional migration, and, therefore, complicated the transition to a post-industrial development stage.
The author: V. Alex Akulich
Source: Belarusian Yearbook