From: Exit Staff 35 min. ago
Bulqiza Mineworkers Trade Union Responds to AlbChrome’s Denial of Neglect and Unlawful Intimidation
Miners in Bulqiza from the Syndicate of Unified Miners of Bulqiza (SMBB) are continuing their strike against AlbChrome, after the company unlawfully fired two of the union’s leaders in November. The SMBB was established to address the dangerous working conditions in the Albanian chrome mines and the lack of investments.As a result of Exit’s reporting, AlbChrome, which is owned by Albania’s richest oligarch, Samir Mane, sent us an official refutation stating that “AlbChrome […] excels as regards the safety of its miners in Bulqiza,” claiming that its mines had been certified by the US company Predictive Safety. Albchrome further claimed it had invested $2 million on the safety of the mines since 2013. Exit reached out to the SMBB for a response to AlbChrome’s claims about improving the safety of the mines. The response of the miners, which live in one of the poorest and underserved regions of Albania, was as follows: https://exit.al/en/2019/12/19/bulqiza-mineworkers-trade-union-responds-to-albchromes-denial-of-neglect-and-unlawful-intimidation/