Information workers: the social group profile

Information workers are at present one of the most dynamic groups of Russian society. They are a significant agent in the promotion of new technologies in Russia, but they rarely become an object of study. The article analyzes the process of the group’s becoming and reproduction. It emphasizes that the modern information worker is different from those who were engaged in the production and preservation of information in the past. Today it is a young man or woman who unlike past workers is not closely involved in the production of machine technology. He or she is now engaged in the production and dissemination of information as such. As a rule, he or she is employed in the most dynamic Russian industries and is often part of the global information processes. His or her input into the development of economy is in Russia lower than in the developed countries. The reason for it is the stagnant character of the Russian economy and a slow pace of technological and organizational innovation in it. Information workers are different from other groups of the Russian population in the way they position themselves on the labor market. They display a higher level of confidence in the preservation of their jobs and are better adapted to new forms of employment – access at distance, reduced or part-time employment.