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13 July, 2005ICEM News Release No. 18/1999
Workers at Chernobyl and Ukraine's four other nuclear power stations are still on course for an indefinite strike, beginning next Monday.
The Ukrainian government has now taken a few preliminary steps towards tackling the nuclear sector's enormous financial problems. Those problems are the root cause of the workers' main grievance - the wage backlog of more than 15 million US dollars that is now owed to them (see UPDATES 13/1999, 14/1999 and 16/1999).
But the nuclear workers themselves have not yet seen the colour of any money. Their union, the ATU, has declared itself "dissatisfied" with the government's action to date, and has maintained its call for strike action from 22 March onwards.
Protests continue to grow, meanwhile. By 12 March, 2,638 nuclear workers had moved into the "canvas cities" of tents pitched around the nuclear power stations.
At the global level, the ATU is affiliated to the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM).
Today, ICEM General Secretary Vic Thorpe repeated his call for the international community to help achieve a rapid settlement of the dispute.
Thorpe stated: "The world community, and in particular those governments and intergovernmental agencies that have been supporting the renewal of the Ukrainian nuclear industry, must now move without further delay to ensure targeted assistance, specifically earmarked for the financing of the Ukrainian nuclear workers' past, present and future wages. Social justice, but also international nuclear safety, requires this."
Ukrainian Prime Minister Valery Pustovoichenko met the ATU leadership on 11 March, and it was agreed that such meetings will now be held at least once a week until the dispute is resolved.
The commission established at the beginning of March to tackle the problem of Ukraine's massive unpaid electricity, heating, gas and coal bills is continuing to meet under the personal supervision of Deputy Prime Minister V. Kurachenko. The commission is empowered to cut off all supplies to major defaulters. According to information received by the ATU, some 18,000 Ukrainian enterprises are at risk.
The government claims that the crackdown on non-payers will bring in new revenue that will help resolve the wage dispute.
It has also floated the idea of new increases in the energy prices charged to individual consumers. This would undoubtedly cause further hardship at a time when many Ukrainians already face severe financial problems - due, amongst other things, to the non-payment of wages in many sectors.
The ATU has therefore clearly rejected the price hike proposal. "The workers do not wish to resolve their problems at the expense of other citizens," the union stated.
Meanwhile, the country's energy ministry seems likely to receive a new loan of 120 million hryvnia from the commercial banks [approximately 30 million US dollars at today's official rates].
And one big electricity customer has finally paid its bill - in its own way. The Ukrainian agricultural industry has just delivered 62,400 tonnes of grain to the national nuclear utility, Energoatom. It will now be up to Energoatom to get the best price that it can for the cereals, in an attempt to raise some desperately-needed funds.
The Ukrainian government has now taken a few preliminary steps towards tackling the nuclear sector's enormous financial problems. Those problems are the root cause of the workers' main grievance - the wage backlog of more than 15 million US dollars that is now owed to them (see UPDATES 13/1999, 14/1999 and 16/1999).
But the nuclear workers themselves have not yet seen the colour of any money. Their union, the ATU, has declared itself "dissatisfied" with the government's action to date, and has maintained its call for strike action from 22 March onwards.
Protests continue to grow, meanwhile. By 12 March, 2,638 nuclear workers had moved into the "canvas cities" of tents pitched around the nuclear power stations.
At the global level, the ATU is affiliated to the 20-million-strong International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM).
Today, ICEM General Secretary Vic Thorpe repeated his call for the international community to help achieve a rapid settlement of the dispute.
Thorpe stated: "The world community, and in particular those governments and intergovernmental agencies that have been supporting the renewal of the Ukrainian nuclear industry, must now move without further delay to ensure targeted assistance, specifically earmarked for the financing of the Ukrainian nuclear workers' past, present and future wages. Social justice, but also international nuclear safety, requires this."
Ukrainian Prime Minister Valery Pustovoichenko met the ATU leadership on 11 March, and it was agreed that such meetings will now be held at least once a week until the dispute is resolved.
The commission established at the beginning of March to tackle the problem of Ukraine's massive unpaid electricity, heating, gas and coal bills is continuing to meet under the personal supervision of Deputy Prime Minister V. Kurachenko. The commission is empowered to cut off all supplies to major defaulters. According to information received by the ATU, some 18,000 Ukrainian enterprises are at risk.
The government claims that the crackdown on non-payers will bring in new revenue that will help resolve the wage dispute.
It has also floated the idea of new increases in the energy prices charged to individual consumers. This would undoubtedly cause further hardship at a time when many Ukrainians already face severe financial problems - due, amongst other things, to the non-payment of wages in many sectors.
The ATU has therefore clearly rejected the price hike proposal. "The workers do not wish to resolve their problems at the expense of other citizens," the union stated.
Meanwhile, the country's energy ministry seems likely to receive a new loan of 120 million hryvnia from the commercial banks [approximately 30 million US dollars at today's official rates].
And one big electricity customer has finally paid its bill - in its own way. The Ukrainian agricultural industry has just delivered 62,400 tonnes of grain to the national nuclear utility, Energoatom. It will now be up to Energoatom to get the best price that it can for the cereals, in an attempt to raise some desperately-needed funds.