moscow

Scientists in Moscow have vowed to continue protesting at the lack of adequate funding for research, rejecting an agreement reached last month between the Russian Committee of Scientific Collectives (RCSC) and the deputy prime minister Vladimir Bulgak.

Although the government has, in line with the agreement, paid the scientists their salaries for November, a meeting of the trade unions of the Moscow branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) issued a statement saying that they felt “free to break the achieved agreements” (see Nature 396, 208; 1998).

The researchers insist that, before the end of the year, the cabinet should transfer 5 billion rubles (US$28 million) to scientific organizations, including 2.9 billion rubles in salaries. These figures were approved earlier this year by the previous government, which was dissolved in August.

But these figures are significantly higher than those in the agreement signed by the RCSC, which is the Russian trade union of scientific workers. This gives only 1.9 billion rubles, including 1.8 billion in scientists' salaries. The cabinet has promised to pay another 1.1 billion rubles to scientists in January and February next year, and the remaining 2 billion will be provided in exemptions from utility charges.

The Moscow RAS trade unions say that they cannot accept a situation in which there is virtually no money for scientific work itself, such as equipment, reagents, conferences and seminars. They are seeking the support of other regional branches for their position.