The workers of Alexandrinskaya ore mining company (which is a member of Russian Copper Company Holding) organized an official picket aimed at protesting against their employer’s unfair trade union policies. The picket took place in front of Russian Copper Company’s office in Chelyabinsk on April 19, 2010, the Russian Federation Mining & Metallurgical Trade Union reports.

‘The company’s trade union has felt strong administrative pressure for many months now. When the management have to make somebody redundant, they mostly pick the trade union’s most active representatives. The trade union’s Deputy Chair N. Knyazkova has already been fired twice and then returned to work through the court’s rulings, for example. Still, a new order to fire her has been issued recently. The managers threaten the workers with redundancies if the latter refuse to leave the trade union. What is more, the main points of the existing collective agreement (including the aspects related to pay rise) have not been observed at Alexandrinskaya ore mining company since last year,’ the trade union representatives report.

According to the Russian Federation Mining & Metallurgical Trade Union, the workers have been afraid to protest for a long time for fear of losing their jobs. However, their patience has finally run out.

The main demand the picketers put forth during their protest action in Chelyabinsk was to stop exerting pressure on trade union members.

Apart from Alexandrinskaya ore mining company workers, the picket was attended by the representatives of two other members of Russian Copper Company Holding (Kyshtym copper plant and Karabashmed) as well as by workers of some Chelyabinsk-based metallurgical enterprises.

‘The collective agreement is not complied with at Kyshtym copper plant either, so its workers joined the miners to demand justice at work,’ the Russian Federation Mining & Metallurgical Trade Union explains.