Employees of Hemus Highway Company Hold Strike over Salaries

About 600 employees of Avtomagistrali-Tcherno More ("Black Sea Highways") have staged a protest in the northern Bulgarian town of Shumen.

Gathering in front of the Municipality's building in Shumen, they protested about not having received any payment in the last three months, Dariknews has reported.

They demand that they receive their wages and also that the management of state-owned Road Infrastructure Agency, including its head Stefan Chaykov, step down.

Other sources put the number of demonstrators at 200.

Avtomagistrali-Tcherno More has been assigned the building of a stretch of the Hemus Highway, one of Bulgaria's top-priority infrastructure.

It is yet to receive some BGN 13 M of state funding, which had to be allocated this spring.

The cash-stripped company also fails to carry out its activities on the project as it cannot make payments to subcontractors.

Shumen Minicipal Governor Ventsislav Yankov announced in response to the protesters that he had held talks with Regional Minister Desislava Terzieva.

In Yankov's words, Terzieva was committed to transferring the money as quick as possible, but the decision "should be approved by the Council of Ministers".

Yankov explained his point to the crowd, but was booed by the protesting employees.

Demonstrators declared their intentions to go on strike last week, threatening to seal off roads.

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