Some 300 workers of the privately-owned Dioki company gathered in Zagreb's central Ban Jelacic Square where they started a protest against the government's disinterest in saving this petrochemical company and its workers, with the message "Dioki might be privately owned, but its workers aren't."
On behalf of the protesting Dioki workers, Bojan Kovacic asked the government to decide if the oil company INA and the power company HEP would become part of Dioki's ownership structure or if Dioki would file for bankruptcy.
The least they can do is send us off to the Employment Service in a dignified manner with our salaries and severance packages, Kovacic said.
The president of the Federation of Croatian Independent Trade Unions (SSSH), Mladen Novosel, stressed that nobody could say Dioki was a privately-owned company so that the government could not be concerned with the fate of its workers. The Constitution says that everyone must be paid for their work and the government must make private owners pay salaries to their workers.
The president of the association of Croatian workers' trade unions, Damir Jakus, wondered how the government can allow a private entrepreneur to owe this much. Is the Dioki majority owner, Robert Jezic, a friend of the people in the government, are there some common interests there, is this the reason why this issue is not being dealt with, Jakus asked.
The president of the Independent Trade Unions of Croatia, Kresimir Sever, said that "if the company is privately-owned, its workers are not", warning government members they did not have the right to their own peace as long as workers were not getting paid for their labour.
The protesters headed from the central square towards the Economy Ministry, shortly stopping by the Finance Ministry and the Chief State Prosecutor's Office.
They are demanding the payment of the last six unpaid salaries.
The protesters were received by Labour and Pension System Minister Mirando Mrsic.
