Protester Blocks Factory Gate Over Unpaid Wages in Yekaterinburg

A Yekaterinburg resident, Vladislav Boyarsky, has gone on a hunger strike and blocked the entrance to an industrial zone on Montazhnikov Street. The man said he was driven to this action by unpaid wages. Vladislav explained that since November 2023 he worked as a supply manager at SpetsEnergoModul, a company that manufactures mobile power stations. But recently, payment issues began:

«In August I received 23,000 rubles (approx. $250 at current rates), in September—20,000. In October and November, not a single kopek! This despite the fact that the entire salary is official and amounts to 75,000 rubles. Those who quit in February still haven»t received anything,« declared Vyacheslav (note: the quote uses the name Vyacheslav, but the protester is identified as Vladislav elsewhere in the article).

According to him, former employees who have already quit have filed a collective complaint with the Investigative Committee. He himself also plans to do this.

»The director promised every day that the salary would be paid any minute. He called again and said there would be no money until Friday, like, come on Friday!« Vladislav said indignantly.

The man, incidentally, faced anger from colleagues. Some believed that the striker essentially decided to sabotage the company»s work, worsening an already difficult situation. In the video below you can watch a recording of one of the conflicts.

«I»ll move your car right now. Have you no fear in life? I«m asking you man to man, let me through, I need to work!» shouted one of the men.

The head of the enterprise, Roman Neujmin, in a conversation with E1.RU, confirmed the fact of the debt. But he stated that Vladislav embellished the situation in his favor:

«He»s kind of unhinged, he«s hindering vehicle access and shipments,» complained Roman Neujmin. «Vladislav is our current employee, but he constantly skips work. He doesn»t do his job very well. We agreed with him on the payment of a monthly salary, and I paid him that. But he showed up with a strike, despite the agreements, to prevent other people from working.«

Roman Neujmin explained the wage arrears by »the economic situation in the country.« At the same time, he assured that he would settle accounts with Vladislav and the other workers.

Earlier we reported that drivers for a major retail chain in Yekaterinburg reported a sharp decrease in their wages.