"Does this mean we don't deserve the minimum wage?" Firefighters in Buryatia are quitting due to low wages.
Employees of two fire departments recorded video messages asking for help addressed to the head of the department. Buryatia Alexey Tsydenov.
Workers of Unit No. 37 Pribaikalsky district asked The regional leader must resolve the issue of wages, otherwise there will be "no one to put out fires" in the region.
According to firefighters, they receive only 23 thousand rublesMoreover, this amount is achieved through a supplement to the minimum wage. Because of this, four experienced employees left the unit last month, and four more are planning to leave soon.
Two drivers, one firefighter, and one fire chief—this is the modest complement of firefighters on duty. The unit's range extends 70 kilometers along the federal highway, where they conduct emergency rescue operations. Firefighters ensure the safety of ten populated areas, seven summer cottage communities, home to 13 people, as well as schools, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and gas stations.
"It's frustrating to see that month after month, my pay slips contain a line item labeled 'additional payment to the minimum wage.' Does this mean we don't deserve the minimum wage?" — the authors of the appeal are indignant.
If the wage issue isn't resolved, there may be no one left to put out the fires in the Pribaikalsky district.
Similar video message recorded firefighters from Zaigraevsky district. They're asking Tsydenov to save their unit, which is about to be disbanded due to a shortage of staff, who are quitting due to low wages. According to the firefighters, given the colossal workload in their area (20 people, 78 gardening associations), their labor is valued at only 22 rubles.
At the same time, they are required to repair the fire station, which is practically completely lacking in material and technical support, and to pay for uniforms out of their own pockets. Currently, only three of the station's 15 employees are on duty. The rest are on sick leave or have resigned.
Firefighters in Buryatia have long complained about low wages. In 2018, the city Grandma's They asked regional authorities to pay attention to the level of wages, which at that time was 14 thousand. The republic's leadership then promised a 1000-ruble bonus. It later emerged that workers who complained about low salaries were "asked" to resign.
In 2022, firefighters Oktyabrsky district of Ulan-Ude They asked about raising the salary of the head of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. To Alexander Kurenkov, who visited the unit. The head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations promised to continue "working on the issue of equalizing the salaries of agency employees."
