Labor Migrants from the CIS Countries to Russia: Scope, Aspects, Problems

Abstract

The decline of the role of a national state after World War II, which went against the conservative idea, inseparable from the awareness of national interests and the right of citizens to control the size and composition of the population of their own country, influenced approaches to the problem of migration. The movement of migrant flows from the CIS countries to the Russian Federation fits into the objective migration process taking place in the world, which is characterized by movement from the periphery to the center. Russia continues to be the center and attracts residents of the periphery of the once unified state, its per capita GDP figures continuing to differ favorably from those recorded in the former Soviet republics. The process inevitably leads to problems of adaptation of migrants in a receiving country. The article examines the evolution of attitude towards the problem of inclusion of migrants into society of the host countries from the so-called “melting pot”, meaning their complete assimilation, to transnationalism that allows people to have two or more cultural identities and be involved in multiple social contexts. The economic motivation of employers preferring to hire immigrants from the CIS countries, who are more “competitive” in comparison with domestic specialists claiming decent working conditions and pay, often prevails.