Metro Employees Meet Tbilisi Mayor
Tbilisi metro employees who are on strike at present had a meeting with Mayor Kakha Kaladze late night on Monday, which ended without results.
According to Vice-Mayor Irakli Khmaladze, both sides are willing to reach an agreement.
“We will go and meet the employees of Gldani metro who are on strike. We will try to reach agreement with them,” Khmaladze added.
Kaladze has yet to comment on the meeting, so it remains unknown when the metro will resume working.
Trade union Unity 2013 says the decision will be made after consulting all the employees who are on strike.
On Monday afternoon, the movement Auditorium 115 released a letter supporting the metro employees.
The movement says the metro staff deserves higher salaries than some City Hall employees.
“Metro workers spend more than half of their lives underground, in excessive noise, vibration, radiation and lack of oxygen…They transport around 400 thousand people per day. They really deserve higher salaries than Tbilisi Vice-Mayors, Heads of Departments and Governors,” the statement of Auditorium 115 reads.
Later, the students held a protest rally in solidarity with the metro workers.
Metro workers went on strike on June 3 after working hours, however, their protest on June 4 paralyzed the whole transport system in the capital. City Hall offered citizens no-pay bus services but due to the excessive number of passengers, the majority of people complained they could not get on the transport.
The metro employees demand a 45% salary increase and improved working conditions; however, Tbilisi Mayor, Kakha Kaladze has said many times that City Hall cannot afford to do so.
By Thea Morrison
Photo source: Netgazeti
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