Moscow
\nEmployers and staff should have families and avoid engaging in relationships with colleagues, according to the Russian Orthodox Church\u2019s deputy chair for external relations.
\nIn an interview with the \u201cGazeta\u201d newspaper, Vakhtang Kipshidze acknowledged that there may be good candidates among bachelors and divorcees, but stressed that it should not be standard practice to hire them.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s not about limiting the rights of candidates for the job. It\u2019s more about the social norm becoming that male managers and employees are all family men. There can be exceptions, but they shouldn\u2019t become the norm,\u201d he said, without specifying whether the same practice should be applied to women.
\nKipshidze went on to say that divorce should become less common and that \u201cif we want to move towards a more traditional way of thinking, divorce should be seen as a tragedy.\u201d
\nThe cleric stressed that men should get married and have families rather than getting involved in workplace romances.
\n\u201cIf we\u2019re talking about men, they should assume greater responsibility for creating families, rather than maintaining relationships that are undemanding and unburdensome, including those with colleagues at work,\u201d the Russian Orthodox Church representative concluded.
\nIn an earlier statement on Friday, Kipshidze also said that when someone is appointed to a managerial position, their family status is especially important. \u201cIf someone can\u2019t create their own family, it\u2019s a big question mark over whether they can lead large teams,\u201d he argued.
\nPresident Vladimir Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church have long been champions of traditional family values, and the Russian leadership has taken a number of steps in recent months to tackle population decline.
\nIn October, the State Duma passed a bill that would introduce fines for those who promote \u201cchild-free ideology.\u201d The move is part of a wider effort to protect traditional values.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Moscow Employers and staff should have families and avoid engaging in relationships with colleagues, according to the Russian Orthodox Church\u2019s deputy chair for external relations. In an interview with the \u201cGazeta\u201d newspaper, Vakhtang Kipshidze acknowledged that there may be good candidates among bachelors and divorcees, but stressed that it should not be standard practice to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":441470,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-441441","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n