Sochi 2014 Struggling to Recruit Domestic Workers from Within the City

Sochi 2014  Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee President and chief executive Dmitri Chernyshenko has claimed only 20 per cent of the staff required can be recruited from within the city.

Chernyshenko was speaking after Sochi 2014 signed further transport and personnel agreements, as the International Business Forum in the city comes to a conclusion.

“Sochi is experiencing a shortage of skilled workers for the Games, only 20 per cent of potential employees [in Sochi] are qualified enough,” he said.

“This is not a unique situation in Russia – we are facing unprecedented challenges.”

Sochi signed deals with Kelly Services from the the United States, Adecco from Switzerland and Russian company Exect Business Training to handle recruitment and staffing during the Winter Olympic Games.

Kelly will take charge of finding permanent staff, Adecco will deal with temporary recruitment and Exect is responsible for training services.

Despite his solemn analysis, Chernyshenko remained upbeat and, with the new deals signed, he sees a very bright future for Sochi.

He said:”Adecco has done Olympic Games from Sydney to London and knows better than we do the difficulties of skills shortages. Thousands of people must be moved here and convinced to settle. If we do this, it will make Sochi the most popular place in Russia, with all kinds of people speaking all kinds of languages.”

Adecco Group Russia’s director general Natalia Dolzhenkova said: “I am sure Adecco’s great experience and expertise in hiring and providing temporary staff will make it possible for bright and talented people to find a job in the Sochi Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2014 – and make it truly unforgettable.We are proud of our status as a supplier,” added Natalia Matusova, vice-president of Kelly Outsourcing and Consulting. Our knowledge and experience will prove to be of significant value in the quest to achieve the goals facing the Sochi 2014 Games.”

Exect Business Training will train approximately 25,000 volunteers and 5,000 other personnel in the build up to the Games, with around 187,500 staff needed to ensure Sochi is able to organise a successful Olympics and Paralympics.

Just an hour before these deals were agreed, Sochi 2014 signed further transport and personnel agreements.

Chernyshenko put pen to paper on an agreement with Sweden’s Scania and GAZ Group, a company that is a joint cooperation between Ford and Russia, for the provision of buses during the 2014 Games.

GAZ Group’s Nikolay Odintsov said: “The first Games experience that GAZ had was during Moscow 1980. Being a supplier for the Sochi 2014 Organising Committee is so important for us because the agreement symbolises the continuity of traditions and confidence in our company.”

His views were mirrored by Scania’s managing director Hans Tardell, who said it was “a great honour” to be selected as a supplier to Sochi 2014.