Miners of Lviv Oblast Started Their New 2016 Year With Strikes

January 2, 2016: the employees of mine “Stepova” started a protest action demanding the reimbursement of their salaries. On January 4, the workers of mine “Velykomostivska” and mine “Lisova” supported their colleagues and initiated strikes in their mines. These three mines belong to State Enterprise “Lvivvugilliya”. The miners insist that their salaries for November and December 2015 should be reimbursed immediately.

January 5, 2016: Lviv oblast miners came out for a meeting at the central Chervonograd square demanding the reimbursement of their salaries’ arrears. The miners say that if the salary debts are not reimbursed by 7 January they will organize a bigger meeting with thousands of protesters and will block highways leading to trans-border territories as Rava-Ruska.
The total salary debt amount for miners in 2015 makes up 825 million Hryvnas. Besides Lviv mines, the situation with salary debts in other coal mines of the country remains difficult (Volyn, Donetsk and Luhansk mines). For example, miners of “Pivdennodonbaska #3” mine haven’t been paid their 3-months salaries for 2014. More than 5,5 million Hryvnas are to be paid to the workers of “Lviv coal mining company”.
«Ukraine now is facing strong frosts and during the last three days the coal stock at heating plants decreased by 50 000 tons. The stock of coal was possible because of warm November and December days. The state of the Ukrainian mines is in deteriorating condition. If immediate actions aren’t taken, the country will face an energy collapse as the coal mining sector will be completely ruined” – said Mykhailo Volynets, the Head of Independent Trade Union of Coal Miners of Ukraine.