The Rural Urban Wage Gap in the Industrialization of Russia, 1885-1913

This study provides statistical evidence that Russian rural/urban wages diverged substantially during the industrialization of Russia in the late nineteenth century. However, over time both the variation declined and integration somewhat increased as rural labour responded to new opportunities. The patterns were moderately clear for nominal wages. This study supports Paul Gregory`s conclusion that relative advances in the productivity of land in agriculture were accompanied by far greater mobility of labour than is commonly thought in view of the constraints of Russia`s rural institutions.