Belarusians Forced To Take Up Three Jobs To Earn For Bare Essentials

The population is forced to give up bare essentials due to the decrease of incomes and growth of prices.

According to the official information, the Belarusians’ average annual wages, given the growth of prices, reduced by 5,3 % to Bn 745,8 (about $ 370). However, this is in average: there are families whose incomes went down more considerably, what makes many Belarusians either cut back on spending or find an additional job, Deutche Welle reports. 56-year-old Minsker Tamara has managed her own business for 25 years by now – several flower pavilions. The sole trader remembers different times. Now, Tamara says, there is a feeling that the people have less money.

Less Money

So that, according to her observations, the inhabitants of Minsk started buying less food products, in general. For example, if previously there were queues of people with overloaded shopping carts to some 30 cashier desks in the biggest Minsk hypermarket of the “Euroopt” network, then famous for its low prices, then now there are only 4 cashier desks working there, and there have become obviously less people.

Moreover, Tamara notes, judging from the number of discounts in big Minsk stores, for example, in the Central Department Store, they are trying to attract Belarusians, with their decreasing incomes, by some unprecedented actions. There have never been such discounts “for all” in Minsk. This looks like a forced measure these days.

Besides, as for Tamara, the number of her clients has decreased insignificantly. “The people still buy flowers for celebrations and holidays: no crisis can abolish Tatiana’s day or September 1. However, I have to keep or even reduce prices,” - Tamara says.

“There is a need to get into an emergency reserve”

The entrepreneur admits that the profit reduced so the incomes, correspondingly, went down as well: “I used to have an emergency reserve, but now there is a need to get into it in order to pay wages and taxes.” She had to fire five sellers in a year. “I stand behind the counter myself, making bouquets, as I let my seller take a vacation, a year ago 15 people worked at my four trading points, now there are just 10”.

There is an urge to reduce the overhead expenses as well. “Previously I never hesitated to drive anywhere to change some roses that went dirty for a new lot of flowers, but now I calculate whether it’s worth it to use a car. Delta-profits are very small, transport costs have increased (prices for fuel and maintenance of the machine), I started to travel less by car in Minsk," - Tamara says.

She also says she had to change her habits due to the incomes decrease: “I started buying Belarusian clothes instead of famous brands for my 13-year-old son, and they are sometimes of no lower quality”. Tamara does not save on food, the same as with vacations. “We have returned from Croatia recently, we took a vacation at the sea. However, if previously we ordered the most expensive hotels without hesitation, now we try to find something cheaper, we also look for discounts on plane tickets, calculate everything in advance,” - she tells.

Incomes Decrease Remains A Stress Factor

Katsiaryna, a 28-year-old psychologist from Minsk, had to find the third job to make money on the bare necessities. Many of her clients had to do the same. Coming to her for a consultation, the people rarely speak directly about financial problems, but the issue comes to the surface one way or another during discussion of complicated family situations. "It is clear that there would have been less conflicts in families if they could afford a full-fledged vacation, holiday weekends, personal development related to, for example, attending some paid courses but people have no money for that," – Katsiaryna says.

Katsiaryna herself went on vacation for the first time in four years recently – she spent three days in Vilnius. As the young psychologist works under a contract agreement at two of her jobs, she has a right to receive leave allowance only at one workplace. This allowance amounts to about $50 in equivalent. “This money won’t let you go anywhere, probably, just walk for some short distance,” - she says.

The financial situation holds back creating families as well, Katsiaryna says. Young people do not dare for a marriage as they cannot afford to buy accommodation. Katsiaryna’s parents gave her a one-bedroom apartment as a present, they also send her $100-150 monthly, this money mostly goes for qualification upgrade in order to maintain a proper professional level. Katsiaryna’s earnings barely cover living. "I had to cross out the budget article for clothes, I usually pay the rent timely, but this time I will have to postpone paying the rent till the end of September, as I have no money for this because of the vacation,” - Katsiaryna says.

According to her observations, her clients give up bare essentials: paid medical consultations, habitual cosmetics, women choose cheaper hairdressers, try to quit maternity leave earlier. Moreover, the psychologist says, deterioration of financial conditions remains one of the stress factors and aggravating circumstances in case of domestic violence.

“Children Are Expensive”

Katsiaryna is not “morally ready” to give birth to a child due to financial situation. For her, “this is too expensive, I would have to deny myself many things”.

The parents walking at the playground complain about the high cost of raising children due to the falling revenues.

Iryna, a young mother of a 5-year-old son, used to work as a nurse, recently resigned due to the reduction of wages by almost a quarter. And, she says, is not formally a salary cut: they reduced the number of beds in the hospital where she worked, respectively, reduced the entire staff salaries, although the scope of work remained unchanged. "However, previously nurses and nurse's aides received two rates, now they do the same scope of work at one rate," - the young woman says.

At the same time, she has said, the fee for kindergarten has increased and regular classes with the children turned to paid courses, you have to pay so that a child would have something to do in the kindergarten, wouldn’t feel estranged from the community. In addition, payment for the child’s pool trainings and preparatory classes for school has also grown. "I would have never afforded all this with my salary alone,” - Iryna says.