Link for IT people or distribution work

They want to forcefully send young IT specialists to work in the regions. An ambiguous law in the field of education is being considered in the Federation Council. I figured out what the essence of this bill is, described its pros and cons, and I want to discuss it with you.

What’s happened?

On April 25, the Council for the Development of the Digital Economy under the Federation Council discussed a proposal to return the distribution system for IT graduates. On April 27, the draft legislative initiative was registered and sent to the Council of Legislators. Member of the Federation Council Artem Sheikin also expressed support for the project:

“Such a system will be beneficial not only for companies that will satisfy their needs for qualified specialists, but also for the graduates themselves. They will be able to get not only a well-paid job, but also the opportunity for professional and career growth. In general, a system of targeted recruitment and distribution of IT graduates is necessary for the effective operation of the IT industry in Russia and its competitiveness on the world stage.”

On May 3, the legislative initiative was accepted for consideration by the commission of the Council of Legislators.

What are they talking about?

• Applicants are planned to be accepted on a budgetary basis in IT specialties only if they agree to subsequent mandatory employment by distribution.

• At the end of the university, graduates of the budgetary form of education will be distributed in accordance with their specialty.

• After distribution, the student will be given a job referral. The term of such work in one place must be at least 3 years.

• Only a few socially vulnerable groups will be able to work at the place of residence.

• If a graduate refuses employment by distribution or terminates the employment contract ahead of time, he will have to pay the cost of training to the budget of the Russian Federation.

Does everything have advantages?

Theoretically, a 3-year job guarantee looks like a good opportunity to gain experience and get to know the field better from the inside. Students will be able to save their time and nerves that would have been spent searching for a company that is ready to hire a specialist without a background.

In addition, I believe that such training can increase the number of budget places in IT areas. This is especially true for young talents from the regions who find it difficult to enter strong universities in large cities.

What’s wrong with this project

1. Soon the dawn, there is no choice

Prohibitive measures are rarely taken positively. This bill deprives graduates of the freedom of choice. Future IT specialists can be assigned to companies that are of no interest to them. If the law comes into force, then students will not be able to decide in what conditions they want to work, what duties to perform and how much they get for it.

“Employment at the place of residence” will be subject to only a few categories of students:

• disabled people of 1 or 2 groups;

• those who have one of the parents / spouse / spouse – disabled people of 1 or 2 groups;

• pregnant graduates, graduates whose spouse is expecting a child, or students with children under 3 years old.

I conclude that students who do not meet these criteria will be distributed anywhere in our country. But what does it mean? Will you be sent to Syktyvkar for 3 years or will you just be given a place in an office on the outskirts of the city? We will find out about this if the bill is still adopted.

2. If you want to leave – pay

   There is an interesting clarification in the draft FZ:

   “In case of refusal of a graduate from employment by distribution or termination of the employment contract earlier than the period specified in part 2 of this article, the cost of training is subject to reimbursement to the appropriate budget of the budgetary system of the Russian Federation.”

   We are back to a situation where teenagers who are about to graduate from school must choose a profession for life. Or at least most of it. But often during training, students, having learned a specialty better, begin to ask themselves a completely logical question: do I really want to do this or is it not mine? As a result, some students go to academies, transfer to other areas, transfer or even take documents from the university. But many stay just to get the coveted crust.

   If such a law is implemented, then graduates who do not want to work in their specialty are unlikely to want to graduate just for the sake of a “crust”. But then they will have to pay for all the years of their budget education.

What do I think about it?

IT people are pretty free guys, they can work in companies that are located anywhere in the world. In order to hire talented young professionals, businesses need to be globally competitive, they need to create an environment that is more attractive than working in an American startup. It is very important that graduates want to work for the benefit of the state. But it is equally important that they themselves grow in this work, personally and professionally.

The defense industry will clearly grow in at least the next 5 years. This means that this industry is potentially promising for young and ambitious professionals. Just the same, you need to “enter” those projects that will grow, there will be more chances to prove yourself and quickly move up the career ladder.

But a university graduate needs mentors and a group of like-minded people. In companies that are experiencing a shortage of staff, such people can also have problems.

In my company, I am for everyone to have the opportunity to find a dream job, and not “settle down” somewhere according to a blind distribution. Enterprises that lack specialists should pay attention to how to increase their attractiveness to candidates. Based on the experience of my service, I can say that the vast majority of vacancies are closed anyway, the main thing is to find your audience of applicants. I am sure that the regions are also able to close the shortage of personnel out of love, and not under duress.

What do you think of such a legislative initiative? What are the pros and cons of this proposal? How will this affect the IT industry?