Siberian Coal Miners Launch Hunger Strike Over Unpaid Wages

A group of coal miners in Siberia’s Kemerovo region said Monday that they were launching a hunger strike after their employer failed to pay them millions of rubles in wages.
At least 12 workers signed a petition announcing the hunger strike that is expected to last until they receive 46 million rubles ($478,000) in unpaid wages, according to a local Telegram news channel, citing a photo of the petition.
The regional branch of Russia’s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said it opened an investigation into the Inskaya mining company for having failed to pay nearly 400 workers between July and October. Local media reported that the striking miners pitched two tents outside the company’s headquarters.
Later on Monday, the Kemerovo region’s Coal Mining Ministry said Inskaya’s owner, Denis Nemykin, agreed to pay off some of the wages by the first week of November. The company owes 1.2 billion rubles ($12.5 million) in salaries and taxes, local media reported, sharing a video of Nemykin meeting with miners.
Nemykin promised to pay off some of the wages within a week if workers agreed to extract the remaining 300,000 metric tons of coal from the mine, but the miners said their equipment was in a “critical” state of disrepair.
“You’re pushing us down a dilapidated mine shaft to our deaths,” local media reported one of the striking miners as saying.
Regional prosecutors said their previous efforts had allowed miners to receive more than 100 million rubles ($1 million) in unpaid wages from the Inskaya coal mine, located some 3,500 kilometers (2,100 miles) east of Moscow.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office has designated The Moscow Times as an “undesirable” organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a “foreign agent.”
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work “discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership.” We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It’s quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you’re defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.