MOSCOW, January 17 (RIA Novosti) – Up to a fifth of Russians work in a shadow economy that does not generate adequate tax payments, the country’s labor minister said Friday.
“Fifteen to 20 percent of citizens” work jobs that do not provide proper tax and social security payments to the government, Maxim Topilin told an economic forum in Moscow.
“I believe that it is simply unfair for those who work legally and pay all their taxes to support those who shirk such responsibility,” the minister said.
He called for stricter legislation as well as economic incentives to promote transparency among Russian businesses.
