belarus executive summary - US Department of State

BELARUS 52
there were no members of REP in Smalyavichy and the chapter should be shut
down.
In Baranavichy the management of a local factory dismissed engineer Viktar
Tsyapin in December. Tsyapin linked his dismissal with his efforts to organize
“the people’s assemblies,” protests by the democratic opposition against poor
economic conditions that were deemed unsanctioned by the government and for
which Tsyapin was fined in October 875,000 rubles ($106). In a similar case, a
private company in Baranavichy dismissed Anzhela Kambalava, who was also
fined 350,000 rubles ($42) for distributing leaflets about “the people’s assemblies”
in October.
On November 14, Dzmitry Karashkou, an operator of a diesel locomotive at the
railroad car repair plant in Homyel, was dismissed for participating in “the
people’s assemblies” and collecting his colleagues’ signatures to petition for a
twofold salary increase in October.
On October 24-25, workers of the municipal service in charge of collecting
garbage in Barysau walked out in protest of salaries as low as 600,000 rubles
($72). After negotiations with the management workers agreed to a monthly 20
percent increase of salaries in addition to a lump sum of 500,000 rubles ($60).
In November workers at a farm in the Malaryta district went on a brief strike
demanding wage increases. The farm management manipulated the situation and
claimed to have raised their pay by 28 percent, which in fact was a nationwide
raise for public sector workers as of October 1.
During the year authorities and state-run enterprises continued to pressure
independent trade unions and deny their right to sign collective bargaining
agreements. For example, after a year of three-party negotiations, state-run oil
refinery Naftan signed on January 28 an agreement with the state-controlled trade
union of chemical industry workers, leaving out the Belarusian Independent Trade
Union (BITU), a member of the BCDTU. The management of Naftan refused to
sign a separate agreement with the chapter of the BITU. On November 30, local
authorities in Navapolatsk denied a fourth application from the BITU to stage an
authorized picket in protest of the refusal.
Since 2000 the government has required state employees, who constitute
approximately 80 percent of the workforce, to sign short-term work contracts.
Although such contracts may have terms of up to five years, most expired after one
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011
United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor