Jessica Otey/ March 27, 2008/ 7:52 pm/ Labor Problems
Last Wednesday, One hundred miners working for a company called RusAI went on strike. They have decided that until their demands are met they will not surface from the mine that they have been working in. The miners are about 700 meters below ground in a mine located in Sverdlovsk, Russia.
The miners are requesting a 40 percent pay raise, eliminating work on Saturdays, allowing miners to strike without being punished upon their return to work, and restarting construction on a local, uncompleted mine.
So far RusAI is not recognizing the miners’ demonstration as an actual strike. The company claims that the miners have not formally submitted a list of their demands and until they do so they are not willing to negotiate. In addition, the company does not approve of how the miners have handled their difficulties with the company. A spokesperson stated that they encourage workers to express complaints in a more constructive approach. RusAI also claims that the miners receive a yearly increase in salary based on inflation rates and as of right now they earn more than the industry’s average.
This article is really quite sad. I cannot imagine staying in a mine for the period of several days. It seems like an extreme way for the miners to get their point across. I think that their efforts would be received a whole lot better if they sat down calmly and discussed their demands with the company. On the other hand, the company could be covering up some of the story to make themselves look better.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/03/28/041.html
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