Giorgi Diasamidze, head of the trade union Labor, on Wednesday told the press19-year-old employee of Evolution Georgia sewed his lips shut during an ongoing strike.
The young man, who wished to remain anonymous, has been working at the company for about a year. His family was unaware of his actions, which occurred late on Tuesday.
Diasamidze expressed concern over the escalating situation, noting that four out of hundreds of striking employees have resorted to a hunger strike, now in its ninth day. He criticized the company for allegedly using hired troll-bots to downplay the severity of the strike on social media.
Just before the incident, Evolution Georgia issued a statement urging striking employees not to endanger their health, stating that the company’s position remained unchanged. The strike began on July 12, with demands for better working conditions. The union claims that over 4,000 employees are participating, while the company asserted the number was closer to 700.
The protest followed the July 2 leak of internal communications among Evolution Georgia managers, where they were caught insulting employees based on their appearance. Today marks the 33rd day of the strike.
