Trade unions formed at many Russian production facilities are beginning to use strikes to press their employers. More and more workers unions report their readiness to go on strike, including those from car plants, sea port docks and coal mines.
On November 4th, workers at Tuapse sea port in Southern Russia began their strike demanding a 20 percent pay increase, and their action is to be followed by Saint Petersburg port on November 14, where employees want wages to increase by 30 percent. Both ports are controlled by the businessman Vladimir Lisin. In Tuapse, workers will cease working for up to 90 percent of their working day, while in Saint Petersburg they will abstain from work for two ours a day.
Today, employees of Ford Motor Company plant in Vsevolozhsk began a one day long token strike, and production line at the facility was stopped fro the whole day. The union has said 1,500 out of 2,200 plant workers are participating. In case Ford’s management does not agree to negotiate with the protesters, an indefinite strike will begin again on November 20th.
Management of SUBR mining company in Sverdlovsk region may soon face the same situation. According to a union leader Valery Zolotarev, SUBR’s administration reports on wage increase by 10.2 percent in 2007 are false. “Wages only grow on papers, and actual pay is not increasing”, said Mr. Zolotarev, adding that reported monthly wage of 29 to 30 thousand rubles (around 1,200 dollars) in fact include the whole ‘social package’, and real payment is 1.66 times lower.
It is notable that all these entities have a long history of worker-employer conflicts. Ford Motor Company employees went on strike last February, and after the action an agreement was sighed between the union and the plant’s management, but now activists say not all of their demands where satisfied. In 2003, SUBR workers declined to leave the mine and stayed there for six days until they came to an agreement with the administration. Due to a strike in 2005, the Saint Petersburg port lost 10 percent of its cargo turnover.
Top managers of the businesses reacts on strikes in its usual way. Ford has laid an action with a local court to declare the action illegal. The plant’s administration say they where not informed about the strike beforehand, as it is provided by the law. The also ask the court to make protesters delay the strike for a month so that the union and the employer could negotiate the minimum works that must be done at the plant during the action.
Administration of Saint Petersburg port accuse trade unionists of ‘provocations and populism’. They say wage rise was scheduled for early 2008, and that activists knew it and tried to gain more popularity making people believe the improvement was a result of the union’s struggle.
As for Tuapse, local conflict resolution authorities have already declared the strike illegal, as the port is listed among Russia’s strategic objects.
Aleksander Moiseenko, a trade union leader from the Saint Petersburg port, sai if the port administration files a suit against workers, they are ready to begin an ‘Italian’ strike, when handling operations are done according to written norms, but no extra work is done by employees.
But what are the reasons of such union activity in recent weeks?
According to Oleg Babich, the Vice Head of Independent Trade Union Federation of Russia, the recent growth of foodstuffs prices ahs played a major role. It is well known that workers, who on average earn about a thousand dollars, spend most of their wages on food for their families. Another factor is also obvious. The coming Duma elections and the presidential elections next Spring put unionists in an advantageous position – clearly, the authorities do not want any public conflict.
But most importantly, Russian trade unions have discovered how powerful they are and understood how much they can do. Their leaders have read the laws and realized how they can negotiate with employers and struggle for their own interests. The only problem is that most employers were not prepared for the new manner of relations with employees.
“Employers are thwart, they are used to shovel up money, but not used to share their incomes with those who take part in production”, Mr Babich has told Expert Online. That is why workers go on strike. “They know such actions badly affect their plants, but often they have no other options”. The union leader thinks the situation will only worsen as long as employers don’t ‘have a more adequate understanding of a worker’s role and don’t want to share’.
Alexander Popov
Photo: Nikita Infant`ev/Kommersant
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