Mariupol. Photo: EPA
Workers at several construction firms in the occupied Ukrainian city of Mariupol have not been paid their wages since December, independent news outlet ASTRA reported on Tuesday, citing information from Russian pro-war volunteer Sania Denisova.
One worker at Industrial Special Technologies (PST), a Russian company contracted to rebuild damaged buildings in Mariupol, told Denisova that despite repeated promises of payment from the employer, he and his colleagues had been left living “on pennies” and forced into debt.
An employee at the Mariupol branch of Ostrob, a construction firm based in St. Petersburg, said that “practically no decent firms” were left in Mariupol that paid their workers’ wages on time.
ASTRA examined the accounts of several Russian construction companies engaged in rebuilding work in Ukraine, and discovered many were facing severe financial difficulties. Russian bank accounts linked to PST have been frozen since at least 11 March, while another company subject to complaints from workers, SpetsSnabTrans, has recently filed for bankruptcy.
The news comes amid broader economic worries for the Russian military-industrial complex, as the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine enters its fifth year. In February, regional governments across Russia posted their largest-ever total budget deficit, attributed in part to a difficult climate for Russian business.
As recently as January, Russian economic analysts were also sounding the alarm about low prices for Russian oil, which reached historic lows of $35 a barrel. That concern proved short-lived, however, as global oil shortages caused by the US-Israeli attacks on Iran have sent oil prices skyrocketing, and gifted Russian oil producers a €9 billion windfall since March.
