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Mining Workers Revolt: Yıldızlar SSS Holding Fails to Pay Wages in Giresun
🇹🇷 Turkey /Economy & Trade

Mining Workers Revolt: Yıldızlar SSS Holding Fails to Pay Wages in Giresun

From Cumhuriyet · () Turkish

Translated from Turkish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Workers at Nesko Maden, a Yıldızlar SSS Holding company in Giresun, Turkey, have not received their salaries since March.
  • Approximately 200 workers are protesting unpaid wages, leading to severe financial hardship, including inability to pay rent and buy necessities.
  • Workers expressed desperation, appealing to President Erdoğan and officials for intervention, highlighting their inability to provide for their families and the threat of job loss for protesting.

Workers at the Nesko Maden company, operating under the Yıldızlar SSS Holding in Turkey's Giresun province, have launched a protest over unpaid wages. Employees report not receiving their salaries since March, plunging around 200 workers into severe financial distress.

We can't even put bread on the table for our children. We are hungry.

— Nesko Maden workerA worker describes the dire financial situation due to unpaid wages.

The workers shared their plight with ANKA News Agency, detailing how the lack of pay has prevented them from meeting basic needs. They are unable to pay rent, purchase groceries, or settle debts with local shopkeepers. The situation has made celebrating the recent Kurban Bayram holiday impossible for many, with some forced to cancel holiday purchases and rely on charity.

Today is June 12. We still haven't received our March salary.

— Nesko Maden workerAn employee highlights the duration of the wage arrears.

One worker, who has been with the company for six years, lamented the irregular payment of wages and appealed directly to President Erdoğan, questioning the government's commitment to supporting workers. "We can't even put bread on the table for our children. We are hungry," the worker stated, expressing a deep sense of neglect. Another employee, working there for eight years, highlighted that even the January salary was paid short due to issues with wage adjustments.

When we go a little too far, we are threatened with our jobs.

— Nesko Maden workerA worker describes intimidation tactics used against protesting employees.

Adding to their grievances, workers reported facing threats of job loss when attempting to organize or protest. They claim that lists of protesting workers were allegedly sent to Ankara, with demands to end the strike. The workers feel exploited, caught in a cycle of working without receiving due compensation, and have abandoned hopes of fighting for new rights, focusing instead on simply receiving their owed wages.

Our friend who was bargaining for the holiday sacrifice had to back out because he didn't receive his salary.

— Nesko Maden workerA worker explains the impact of unpaid wages on the Kurban Bayram holiday.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Cumhuriyet in Turkish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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