The Russian government’s pension reform will hit demographics, because grandparents will be forced to retire later and will not have time to help raise their grandchildren, according to Viktor Levashov, an expert with the Center for Social Demography and Economic Sociology at RAS Institute of Socio-Political Research.
Young families venturing to have several children definitely count on the help of grandparents. However, they will not be able to help because of the pension reform, as they will have to continue working, he argues.
Russia has been having problems with family reproduction even without any pension reform, Viktor Levashov underscored. In big cities, most families have only one child; having more than two is out of the question. Having children sends the family’s living standard sharply down, so young people refrain from having children early because they are afraid to become poor.
He also pointed out that, for previous generations, having a child was a joy; today it has become a problem because parents have almost no free time. On the other hand, according to Viktor Levashov, migration is improving Russia’s demographics. People from Central Asia and the Caucasus come to Russia; they easily find jobs in Moscow and stay.
However, the model that involved the older generation in the socialization of the younger has almost died in big cities. And pension reform was the last stroke to this trend, the expert concluded.