4 ms·

Given the move from Russia to Israel and the timing of when most Russian techies left, I suspect it is more out of fear of the draft than out of principle. Not

Given the move from Russia to Israel and the timing of when most Russian techies left, I suspect it is more out of fear of the draft than out of principle. Not that I blame them - I doubt I would leave the US even during an unjust war… but a draft?

alephnerd 3y ago
100%. It's much easier than naturalizing in Germany, the UK, or US.
cpursley 3y ago
> most Russian techies left This was about them getting paid fat paychecks from western clients/employers not out of draft fears.
- whimsicalism 3y ago
  Not a new phenom, whereas the draft is.
  - alephnerd 3y ago
    IT Professionals and most other white collar jobs are draft exempted in Russia [0] To make up for the unfairness, mobilized Russian soldiers are being paid Russian/Eastern European white collar level salaries ($2,500/mo) [1] The issue is if you're a Russian contractor working for a western company, how is the western company supposed to pay you? Russia's banking system has been decoupled from the west, and even Asian banks in China and India (major trading partners of Russia) are hesitant to fill the gap out of fears of secondary sanctions. If you want to earn dollars, best to move to a Russian speaking country that isn't sanctioned like Kazakhstan, Georgia, or Bulgaria or to an easy to move country for Russians like Turkiye, Serbia, UAE, etc. [0] - https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-excludes-some-it-professionals-bankers-state-journalists-mobilisation-2022-09-23/ https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-excludes-some-it... [1] - https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/opinion/russia-ukraine-war-soldiers.html https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/opinion/russia-ukraine-wa...
    - whimsicalism 3y ago
      > To make up for the unfairness, mobilized Russian soldiers are being paid Russian/Eastern European white collar level salaries ($2,500/mo) [1] $2500/mo is way higher than I would have thought they were paying these soldiers.
      - cpursley 3y ago
        https://youtu.be/t-VUAeRMGQU?si=0wNOnWtIiTBYh2XR&t=287 https://youtu.be/t-VUAeRMGQU?si=0wNOnWtIiTBYh2XR&t=287
        whimsicalism 3y ago
        Interesting - although I think this is clearly intended as somewhat of a propaganda video.
        cpursley 3y ago
        The journalist seems honest and tries to show negative sides as well - even calls it a war. I’ve had a few chats with him on Patreon. His economic and refugee ones in particular were interesting.
        monetus 3y ago
        Yes, sadly for many of their families, whole companies are left in the lurch for extended periods of time, often stuck on the front and meant to stay there. There are some heartbreaking pleas from companies like that, who know they are screwed. I've seen russian POWs claim they are more afraid of their superiors than the AFU. Huge numbers of foreign fighters are there for the $2500 too. So much tragedy.
      - petre 3y ago
        They're only paying the surviving ones. Also they're conveniently delaying payments and benefits to the families of the deceased.
        deleted 3y ago
  - tivert 3y ago
    >>> most Russian techies left >> This was about them getting paid fat paychecks from western clients/employers not out of draft fears. > Not a new phenom, whereas the draft is. Russian techies started to leave immediately following the invasion that started in Feb 2022, because Western firms put in policies forbidding anyone in Russia from having access to their systems due to security concerns. If they were working for or contracting with those firms and stayed in Russia, they'd lose their jobs. It looks like Putin first announced the draft in Sept. 21, 2022, but by then the techies working for or contracting with Western firms had already left or quit.
cyberax 3y ago
> Given the move from Russia to Israel and the timing of when most Russian techies left, I suspect it is more out of fear of the draft than out of principle. Techies bring in $$$, so they are exempted from the mobilization.

alephnerd 3y ago

100%. It's much easier than naturalizing in Germany, the UK, or US.

cpursley 3y ago

> most Russian techies left This was about them getting paid fat paychecks from western clients/employers not out of draft fears.

whimsicalism 3y ago
Not a new phenom, whereas the draft is.
- alephnerd 3y ago
  IT Professionals and most other white collar jobs are draft exempted in Russia [0] To make up for the unfairness, mobilized Russian soldiers are being paid Russian/Eastern European white collar level salaries ($2,500/mo) [1] The issue is if you're a Russian contractor working for a western company, how is the western company supposed to pay you? Russia's banking system has been decoupled from the west, and even Asian banks in China and India (major trading partners of Russia) are hesitant to fill the gap out of fears of secondary sanctions. If you want to earn dollars, best to move to a Russian speaking country that isn't sanctioned like Kazakhstan, Georgia, or Bulgaria or to an easy to move country for Russians like Turkiye, Serbia, UAE, etc. [0] - https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-excludes-some-it-professionals-bankers-state-journalists-mobilisation-2022-09-23/ https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-excludes-some-it... [1] - https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/opinion/russia-ukraine-war-soldiers.html https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/opinion/russia-ukraine-wa...
  - whimsicalism 3y ago
    > To make up for the unfairness, mobilized Russian soldiers are being paid Russian/Eastern European white collar level salaries ($2,500/mo) [1] $2500/mo is way higher than I would have thought they were paying these soldiers.
    - cpursley 3y ago
      https://youtu.be/t-VUAeRMGQU?si=0wNOnWtIiTBYh2XR&t=287 https://youtu.be/t-VUAeRMGQU?si=0wNOnWtIiTBYh2XR&t=287
      - whimsicalism 3y ago
        Interesting - although I think this is clearly intended as somewhat of a propaganda video.
        cpursley 3y ago
        The journalist seems honest and tries to show negative sides as well - even calls it a war. I’ve had a few chats with him on Patreon. His economic and refugee ones in particular were interesting.
        monetus 3y ago
        Yes, sadly for many of their families, whole companies are left in the lurch for extended periods of time, often stuck on the front and meant to stay there. There are some heartbreaking pleas from companies like that, who know they are screwed. I've seen russian POWs claim they are more afraid of their superiors than the AFU. Huge numbers of foreign fighters are there for the $2500 too. So much tragedy.
    - petre 3y ago
      They're only paying the surviving ones. Also they're conveniently delaying payments and benefits to the families of the deceased.
      - deleted 3y ago
- tivert 3y ago
  >>> most Russian techies left >> This was about them getting paid fat paychecks from western clients/employers not out of draft fears. > Not a new phenom, whereas the draft is. Russian techies started to leave immediately following the invasion that started in Feb 2022, because Western firms put in policies forbidding anyone in Russia from having access to their systems due to security concerns. If they were working for or contracting with those firms and stayed in Russia, they'd lose their jobs. It looks like Putin first announced the draft in Sept. 21, 2022, but by then the techies working for or contracting with Western firms had already left or quit.

cyberax 3y ago

> Given the move from Russia to Israel and the timing of when most Russian techies left, I suspect it is more out of fear of the draft than out of principle. Techies bring in $$$, so they are exempted from the mobilization.