Workers at two mineral water plants in Borjomi, Georgia began striking with overwhelming majority support on May 31, 2022 to protest wage cuts, the termination of 49 workers including the union’s leader Tsotne Kiknadze and union committee members, and the company’s theft of union dues.
- Despite management’s efforts to intimidate, threaten and blackmail the workers, they are determined to strike until their rights are restored with pickets being held outside the two striking plants
- Approximately 400 workers are demanding reinstatement of all terminated workers, a new collective bargaining agreement, payment of dues owed to the union, and the dismissal of managers flagrantly violating workers’ rights
- On June 13, the Prime Minister of Georgia ordered the Ministers of Economy and Labor to organize and facilitate negotiations between the workers and the employer; while the union hopes this will lead to progress, the workers will continue the strike until their demands are met and an agreement with the employer is signed
Giorgi Diasamidze, Chair of IUF affiliate Georgian Agriculture, Commercial and Industry Worker’s Trade Union, stated: “For more than two weeks, Borjomi workers have been fighting not only for their jobs, but also for the future of their company, a proud symbol of the Georgian economy. Despite all the difficulties, the workers are ready to defend their rights and their livelihoods by all legal means. We thank the IUF for supporting our demands and for its solidarity. We will win this fight.”
