NPP construction worker: Supervisors steal cement, managers misuse budget

Two thousand construction workers quit.

Belsat TV learnt it from a man who works at the construction site of the Belarusian nuclear power plant in Astravets. The worker asked not to give his name.

A cubic metre of cast concrete used to cost 1 million rubles against 16 thousand now.

“I am a steel fixer at Belenergostroy company. I have been tying reinforcing bars, casting concrete and setting forms in the pit since the beginning of the year. I have been working at the construction site for 18 months,” he says.

– How much do you earn?

– My wage is so low that I don't want to tell you. Three million. They used to pay normal wages, sometimes up to 10 million, but now we have nothing.

– How many days a month do you work?

– We work on a rotating basis. We used to work 15 days and have a rest for 15 days. They have changed employment agreements recently. We now work 20 days a month. They see that we are behind schedule. There's nothing strange, Nobody wants to work hard for that money. I am supposed to tie 500 kilogrammes of rebars a day. It is impossible. They set high standards to pay us less. They used to pay one million for a cubic metre of cast concrete, but now they pay only 16 thousand rubles. This is an outrage.

Managers misuse budget

– Are there any people who have normal wages?

– Only relatives and right people, if you understand what I mean. What is the most interesting is that supervisors steal on a large scale. One was caught. He is tried now.

– What did he steal?

– Blocks, cement and everything he could. This is chaos. Managers misuse the budget.

– Do many workers quit?

– Plenty of people leave work. Six thousand people worked here a year ago. Now we have only 4,000 workers. I would like to quit too, but no one allows me. They say they don't have enough workers. You can violate your employment contract, but it is not a good idea. I don't want to be fired for violations. How will I find a new job? Thirty two people apply for a vacancy of a mover. We have no jobs in the town. I tried to file a resignation letter, but my supervisor just marked it as “read”. He will be reprimanded, if he agrees to dismiss me.

Almost one-third of workers are from Ukraine

– Did you try to complain?

– About whom? We wrote to the Prosecutor General's Office, local officials and Lukashenka's administration. It was in vain. It was fine until the conflict in Ukraine. By the way, almost one-third of workers are Ukrainians. They have arrived lately. Three million is not bad money for them.

– Do you have a big family?

– I have the wife and two sons. The elder is 27, the younger is a student. He needs some money for food and transport.

– Does your wife work?

– Yes, she earns 2.5 million, the minimum wage. How should we live?

– Who is responsible for the decrease in wages, in your opinion?

– He signs the ordinance on spongers and reduces staff at the same time. Isn't he an idiot? He is definitely an idiot. Of course, he wants strict discipline, but what he does is too much. Why does our parliament do nothing? If I were Lukashenka, I would pay MPs wages of a Belarusian worker. It would make them use their brain. Utility bills are growing, all prices are growing, workers are being fired. Should I go to live in a tent now?

– Who is guiltier – Lukashenka or MPs?

– I can say what the youth at the construction site think. A guy asks why the dung of cows and goats is so different. All answer they don't know. Why am I telling you this? Don't get into politics if you are not a specialist in shit.

Many international organisations, ecologists and authorities of neighbouring Lithuania stand against the construction of the nuclear power plant in Astravets. The first energy unit of the NPP is expected to be put into operation a year later that it was planned initially.