Miners of Rostov Region demand to repay wage arrears

In Gukovo, miners and employees of the enterprises of the "Kingcoal" group of companies hold pickets every weekday. The recent protest action held on June 24 gathered about 40 people, who demanded to repay the arrears of wages and coal rations for the past two years in the amount of 300 million roubles to the team of 2000 people.

The picket is to gather 200 people, and it constantly involves 40-150 people, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told by the protesters. For three times, the pickets were not sanctioned by the local authorities.

According to Tatiana Avacheva, an employee of Open Joint-Stock Company (OJSC) "Zamchalovsky Anthracite", the mine "Zamchalovskaya", which is a city-forming facility for Gukovo, is not operated and uncontrollably flooded. The activist believes that fact threatens the city with environmental disaster. According to Tatiana Avacheva, the equipment has been looted.

Tatiana Avacheva notes that there are no top-managers in her company and that personnel and accounting departments are dismissed.

According to the protesters, the mines of the "Kingcoal" group of companies produces the best and most pure anthracite coal in Russia. It was imported throughout the world; however, the owners and the state do not allocate funds for the development of the business.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.