The miners in Tkibuli recommenced work

Today miners in Tkibuli, Georgia, broke off their strike and started full-fledged work, one of the directors of "Georgian Industrial Group" Natia Turnava reported.

Earlier, the "Caucasian Knot" informed that on November, 8, over 1500 workers of the mine named after Mindeli in Tkibuli went on a strike against reduction of their wages and staff redundancy. On November, 19, 300 workers of the mine named after Dzidziguri started a strike of protest against the plans of enterprise "Georgian Industrial Group" (GIG) to close the mine. On November, 21 the miners and local residents held actions of protest in the center of Tkibuli and in front of the Parliament in Kutaisi. The action in front of the President's Palace passed off on November, 23. During the action the miners demanded not to close the mine and make amendments to the Labour Code.

According to Turnava, the strikers protested against closing several sections of the mine named after Dzidziguri. According to the "Georgian Industrial Group" owning two mines in Tkibuli, several sections of the mine named after Dzidziguri are in an emergency state, therefore they were going to close them.

"Activation of underground fires was registered for some time past. Toxins exude as a result which means that work there is connected with a danger for the people's lives. Besides, there are complex mining, geological and technical conditions there, in particular, high mountain pressure emerges. Ultimately, the management of the company arrived at a conclusion that safe mine working in accordance with the existing technologies in a number of sections of the mine named after Dzidziguri was impossible, a statement of the "Georgian Industrial Group" dated November, 19, runs.

According to Chairman of United Trade Unions of Georgia Irakli Petriashvili, negotiations with the miners lasted seven hours and an agreement was achieved among the management of the "Georgian Industrial Group" (GIG), Trade Unions and the committee of strikers.

It was decided to form a commission enjoying trust of both the committee of strikers and the administration. It will study the situation in the supposedly emergency sectors and report its expert opinion. Only then a decision of either closing the mine or continuing its work will be taken, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

"In addition, several members of local management of the mine were replaced upon the strikers' demand", Natia Turnava informed.