Russia mulls inviting students, unemployed, convicts to help with harvest

A harvester works at a soya farm near Russia's Birobidzhan on Oct. 19, 2018. (Xinhua/Zhang Ruoxuan)

Russia needs an additional 23,000 people to collect this year's crops, as it faces a shortage of foreign seasonal workers.

MOSCOW, April 8 (Xinhua) -- The Russian Agriculture Ministry said Wednesday it is considering inviting students of agricultural colleges and universities, unemployed persons and convicts to help with harvesting.

Russia needs an additional 23,000 people to collect this year's crops, as it faces a shortage of foreign seasonal workers due to the closure of its borders amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the ministry said in a statement.

According to the statement, it could invite people who have lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 outbreak, around 11,000 agriculture students, as well as convicts, primarily those sentenced to correctional labor.

Russia normally starts winter grain harvesting around the end of June. As a major global exporter, the country sold over 43 million tons of grain in the 2018-2019 agricultural year, according to official data. ■