MOSCOW, July 7. /TASS/. The majority of Russian citizens (80%) say they would continue to work even if they didn't have to, a survey conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) reveals.
"Russians have repeatedly called work one of the most important aspects of everyday life. <..> During the June poll, the majority of Russians said that if they were offered the opportunity to not work, they would turn it down," the study says.
According to the study results, Russians have developed a "special" attitude towards work. More than half of those surveyed (57%) have a negative attitude towards people of working age who deliberately do not work.
In the USSR, there was a law that provided for strict punishments for chronic slackers. According to the study, 45% of Russians supported the introduction of a similar law in Russia, while 46% of respondents said they were against it.
"Representatives of Generation Z are 1.5-2 times more likely than representatives of the Soviet generations to admit that they’d opt out of working if given the chance. It’s not that they’re lazy, but that they value different things. For Gen Z, not working doesn’t mean being a selfish couch potato, but rather a chance to occupy themselves with something else - a hobby, self-development, sports. That is, entering the labor market for young people can be associated with the fear of losing personal freedom, the inability to find time for themselves and their hobbies," the study says.
The all-Russian telephone survey VCIOM-Sputnik was conducted on June 14, 2025 among 1,600 Russians over the age of 18.