A Russian billionaire wants Russians to work 12 hours a day, six days a week: It will 'save the economy'

Russian citizens should consider working six 12-hour days a week as the country's economic crisis deepens, Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska said on March 29. He wrote about proposals to save the population of one-sixth of the world's land. AOL.

Citing the changed global reality, Deripaska characterized the country's economic slowdown as more than just a downturn related to interest rates or monetary policy.

"This crisis is deeper. It's caused by a complex transformation—from the global opportunities we had to regional ones, with various limitations," Deripaska wrote on Telegram.

On the subject: The US has allowed a Russian oil tanker to reach Cuba despite the blockade.

He argues that Russia should rely on what he called its only real resource: its “national identity.”

"In difficult times, we know how to pull ourselves together and work harder," noted Deripaska, founder of the major aluminum producer Rusal.

In his opinion, increasing the length of the working day will help the economy adapt more quickly to changing global conditions.

"The sooner we switch to this schedule—from eight in the morning to eight in the evening, including Saturdays—the sooner we will complete this transformation," the industrialist believes.

His statements come as the Russian economy adapts to a new situation shaped by geopolitical tensions and shifting trade flows. By "geopolitical tensions," the author of the article, Huilen Tan, apparently means, among other things, Russia's war of conquest against Ukraine, into which the aggressor state is pouring billions of dollars.

Russia, a major energy exporter, is benefiting from rising prices, while the oil market is experiencing fluctuations due to the escalation in the Middle East and disruptions to key supply routes.

Oil and gas revenues have traditionally accounted for more than a third of Russia's federal budget, which has come under pressure in recent years due to widespread sanctions. Official estimates project Russia's economy to grow by 1% in 2025 (up from 4,3% in 2024).

Disruptions to tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial global oil supply hub, coupled with limited easing of US sanctions on some Russian shipments, have altered trade flows as countries seek to secure resources.

Moreover, this month, Deripaska warned that the conflict in the Middle East could hinder global economic growth, including Russia's, despite high oil prices.

Benchmark oil futures have risen more than 70% this year and are trading above $100 a barrel.

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P.S. Russians are unlikely to read Oleg Deripaska's comments on Telegram. On the night of April 1, they began complaining en masse about outages in both the Telegram mobile app and Telegram Web. Prior to this, users on Russian channels were concerned that the app might completely stop working in Russia at midnight, writes Фокус.

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