Most Russians who switched to remote working during the coronavirus pandemic have already returned to the office, according to a Rabota.ru survey of employees cited by the RBC news site.
The poll found that just a quarter of Russians started working from home during the pandemic, and that more than half of those have now returned to the office completely. Another 15% are continuing in a mixed format, combining working from the office and home.
In total, just 8% of Russian employees are currently working fully remotely, the survey found.
Mobility trackers showed that despite having one of the strictest lockdown regimes on paper, major Russian cities remained some of the most active in the world at the height of both the first and second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Russia. The country has now lifted almost all of its coronavirus-related restrictions as cases fall and the vaccination campaign continues.
The survey found that 5% of Russian workers said they have been working from home continuously since the start of the pandemic March 2020.
The picture of a return to normality differs starkly with the situation in many European countries, where strict lockdowns are in place and many governments have tightened measures in recent weeks to try to thwart another spike in infections.
Despite the rush back to the office, remote working proved popular among those who tried it, with three-quarters of Russians saying they would like to continue remote working in some format once the pandemic is over.
Key Navalny Supporters’ House Arrests Extended Into Summer
A Moscow court has extended the house arrest of four prominent activists and supporters of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny into the summer, the Mediazona and OVD-Info police-monitoring websites reported Thursday.
Ten Navalny supporters are accused of “inciting mass violations” of coronavirus restrictions by calling on supporters nationwide to protest his jailing in late January and early February. Critics accused the Kremlin of locking up Navalny’s closest allies to stifle dissent ahead of parliamentary elections this September.
Moscow’s Basmanny District Court ruled to keep Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh and Pussy Riot activist Maria Alyokhina, as well as head of Navalny’s Moscow office Oleg Stepanov and municipal deputy Dmitry Baranovsky, under house arrest until June 23.
The court is expected to extend six other supporters’ house arrest later in the day, according to BBC Russia.
They include another Pussy Riot member and municipal deputy Lucy Shtein and Anti-Corruption Foundation lawyer Lyubov Sobol as well as Navalny’s brother Oleg, ophthalmologist and independent doctors’ union leader Anastasia Vasilyeva, senior associate Nikolai Lyaskin and municipal deputy Konstantin Yankauskas.
All 10 face up to 2 years in prison under the coronavirus-related charges that Russian lawmakers passed at the start of the outbreak last spring.
The court handed down its ruling two days after Hollywood stars including Whoopi Goldberg, Martin Sheen and Gillian Anderson signed a letter of solidarity with Alyokhina and Shtein.
Navalny was sentenced to two and a half years in a prison colony last month for violating parole while recovering abroad from a poisoning attack last year. The United States and European Union imposed sanctions on Russian officials and state entities over Navalny’s poisoning, which the Kremlin denies, as well as his imprisonment.
