Crisis in russian mechanical engineering: factory workers go on strike over unpaid wages
Employees of the Aleksandrovsky machine-building plant in russia’s perm krai, which specializes in the production of mining and mineral extraction equipment, have stopped coming to work due to three months of unpaid wages. As a result of the protest, some of the plant’s workshops had to be shut down.
▫️The situation at the plant significantly worsened in 2024 — annual revenue dropped by 6.8%, while losses increased more than fivefold: from 103 million rubles ($1.11 million) to 575 million rubles ($6.18 million). The plant’s management blames the problems on a shortage of components, rising loan costs, and wage indexation.
The difficult situation at the Aleksandrovsky plant clearly illustrates the current state of both mechanical engineering and the mining industry — which is strategic for the russian economy and serviced by this plant. Due to sanctions, enterprises have lost a significant portion of their markets and are being forced to close mines. And as long as the kremlin continues to pour enormous resources into the war, social tensions in russia will continue to grow.
