Work is a place where we spend at least 8 hours a day, so it can never hurt to learn to talk about it in Russian. By the way, the title literally means, “work is not a wolf (and will not run into the woods),” meaning that you shouldn’t work too hard or too much. The word работа itself can refer to both a specific job or work to be done in general, sometimes regardless of employment status. So, you can say, “Я ищу работу” (I’m looking for a job) or “У меня много работы” (I have a lot of work). With this in mind…

Job Search

We’ve already seen искать работу (to look for a job). The corresponding process is called поиск работы. The result is hopefully найти работу (to find a job). You are probably reading ads (объявления) or looking online (в Интернете) for any вакансии (openings). Your next steps are отправить резюме (send your resume) or заполнить анкету (fill out an application), if there is one. If the only contact information on the ad is a phone number, you may need to call. А good opening line is, “Я звоню по поводу вакансии…” + noun in genitive (I’m calling about the position of…).

If the employer (работодатель) thinks you are a promising candidate, you may be invited to a собеседование (interview). Some positions (должности) require тестирование (a test). Others may request рекомендации (references). Hopefully, you will get hired! Принять на работу, взять на работу, принять в штат, нанять can all mean “to hire someone.” Нанять is mostly used to talk about the hiring from the company’s persepective “Фирма наняла специалиста по ПО” (A company hired a software specialist) as opposed to a candidate’s perspective. So, a candidate would be more likely to say, “Меня взяли на работу” (I was hired).

Work Schedule

Altough most people have a нормированный рабочий день (a 9-5 schedule, more or less), график работы (work schedule) may vary greatly.  Other schedules exist, such as “сутки через двое” (24 hours every 3 days) or “два через два” (2 days of work–sometimes for 12 hours–followed by 2 days off). Some people also работают в вечернюю/ночную смену (work the evening/night shift). Most places get перерыв на обед (a lunch break). Суббота and воскресенье (Saturday and Sunday) are mostly выходные дни (days off), although Saturdays may be рабочий день (a work day) in some organizations.

Organizational Structure

You will most likely have a начальник/начальница (boss) and коллеги (co-workers). If you are high enough in the hierarchy, you might have подчинённые (subordinate workers). Perhaps your workplace has отделы (departments) or even филиалы (regional offices).

Pay

In Russia, your salary (зарплата) is normally paid monthly. Hourly pay (почасовая оплата) technically exists, but it’s uncommon to talk about wages. Оклад is your base salary, to which проценты/комиссия (commission) or премия (bonus) may be added. To give someone a raise is повысить зарплату.

Perks and benefits

Employers entice prospective employees with a generous соцпакет (benefits papckage). That includes governement-mandated больничный [лист] (sick leave) and отпуск (vacation). The duration of the annual vacation is 28 calendar days. Ironically, you will see vacancies list оформление по ТК РФ (proper paperwork) as an added perk. TK is Трудовой кодекс (Labor Code). To avoid taxes and other expenses, some employers try to pay their workers “under the table,” which is not only illegal, but also hurts the employee’s record and retirement savings.

Employment Termination

Sadly, sometimes people get fired (to fire – imperf. увольнять/perf. уволить + accusative). Sometimes the company is in financial trouble and people are made redundant (сокращать/сократить). If you are the one quitting, it is called уволняться/уволиться.

Jobs in Russia

Are you already in Russia looking for a job or think you may be looking for a job soon? Several Russian sites have job listings, including rabota.ru, job.ru, zarplata.ru, and hh.ru. I would love to hear your stories about working in Russia! Was it different from your home country? Ah, I remember my first summer job in Russia, when I got paid $170 in an envelope (в конверте, a typical “gray” payment scheme) for being a receptionist for four weeks. Boy, have I come a long way!