Having tired of unpaid wages, miners of the Zasyadko coal mine decided to protest on April 7. 400 people went underground, but refused to start work until they were paid off. Nothing could change the decisions of the miners. Part of the debt for February (63%) was paid off in the afternoon, and pick hammers began to knock.
News of the protests of Donetsk miners quickly spread around the mining cities of the "DNR", and timid murmur of coal workers was ready to grow into mass unrest robots. Apparently, the miners forgot that they live in the outright "people's republic", where people are treated like garbage and a dumb crowd that must work for a penny and even receive its beggarly wage in parts and with delays.
The government machine worked swiftly, and meetings were urgently held at the enterprises, where the miners were "advised" not to look at the Zasyadko coal mine, but to continue the "work of fathers and grandfathers" in the name of peace on earth. They reminded of the honorable work of the miner and glorified the mining dynasties once again. Of course, they allowed to express the dissatisfaction in the square in front of the "Ministry of Coal", but only out of hours. Because the coal must be mined according to the plan and the work cannot be disrupted, otherwise, the "Ministry of State Security of the DNR" will help to resolve the situation. This way, the miners' discontent with their slavish position ended.
An hour after the start of the protest, acting director of the Zasyadko coal mine Vyacheslav Stepanov was urgently summoned to the "Government House", where he was instructed to dismiss all protesters (400 people). Not immediately, of course, so that no one would think that they get rid of too active and unwelcome in this way, but gradually, within 3 months. So that an explosion of public anger does not happen.
7 people were laid off on the same day, 10 more - on the following, then 12. On April 10, the mine broke off labor relations with 32 miners on various excuses. It is also known that some were dismissed with an entry in the employment book "for violation of safety rules", which means that the path to all mines for these miners is closed. Now they can apply their professional skills only at small illegal coalmines.
The actions of the miners were supported on social networks. Allegedly, it is high time to start asserting your rights, otherwise, someone is lining the pockets, and the population is living on the verge of poverty.
Apparently, encouraged by this example and the reaction of the population, the drivers of two bus routes took up the torch of protest. On April 15, buses No.11 and No.4 did not leave for the run. This way, the drivers expressed their disagreement with the policy of the auto-transport enterprise. They report that they have long been forced to change oil and repair vehicles at their own expense, and now they are forced to add their own money, so that the ATE reaches the daily plan rate. The management explains the delay in wages and the need to provide personal money by the quarantine. Allegedly, the passenger traffic significantly reduced due to the lack of students, pupils and those who started working remotely. So the enterprise has been suffering losses for the third week, and the "republic" is in no hurry to provide financial support. Those drivers who were not inspired by the idea were fired without severance allowance on the same day when they dared to show their disobedience.
Long-distance drivers are still silent. They wash the bus interiors with bleach and ride empty to Horlivka and Khartsyzsk. The Yuzhny bus station is empty and dull today. Controllers and cashiers who were not busy with work longingly recall the old days when the platforms were filled up down to the minute - there were so many runs to different directions. Buses from Russia began to come here more often since 2014, but they did not return life to the work of the enterprise.
You can, of course, sigh in this situation and note with sadness that the war was blamed for all, under the conditions of which the young "republic" had to raise its economy; on the top of that - coronavirus. But then the brain refuses to understand some of the actions of the "authorities", which distributes the money strictly at their own pleasuren, rather than being guided by social necessity.
For example, as it became known, during this period when protests caused by backdated wages began to arise in the "DNR", "head" of the "republic" Denis Pushilin donated 24 million rubles from the treasury of the "state" for the development of the Union TV channel and gave loan to the confectionery factory importer in the amount of 500 million rubles. An analogy arises itself with the expression known since ancient Rome - "Bread and circuses!", when the power was retained by distributing products and circus performances for lower classes. Apparently, the rulers of the "republic" also decided that "Sweets and circuses" would help them win people's love. Therefore, television and sweets turned out to be of higher priority in the distribution of financial assistance than hungry miners in a crisis situation.
Liusia Molchanova, Donetsk, for OstroV