In Baikalsk, the BCBK has been permanently closed, and now the main task of the authorities is to help former plant workers who have been left without pay and jobs. Targeted social assistance is already being provided, and job fairs, training and employment consultations have been organized for city residents. How Baikalsk will cope with the consequences of the closure of the city forming enterprise is described in the article.

For several years now, not only the residents of the small town of Baikalsk, but also most people living across the vast Russian expanse, have known what the BPPM is. The production of unbleached pulp is environmentally harmful and pollutes the world’s pearl - Lake Baikal. But, on the other hand, this very production provides jobs for the population of an entire town. There were many questions, many of them unanswered. At first it was unclear whether production would be suspended. When that happened, a number of other questions arose. Would the plant be closed down for good? Would workers be paid their wages? What would happen to the small town, where most of the local population works at the BPPM, if the plant were finally shut down?
Last week, an answer to the most important question appeared: the authorities made a final and irrevocable decision to close the BPPM. The Baikalsk Pulp and Paper Mill no longer exists, but there are still people who simply have nowhere to go in the small settlement.
How will this problem be solved? That is the question we asked ourselves, and here is what we found out.
Former BPPM workers are already being provided with targeted social assistance, by order of the government of the Irkutsk Region. 300 workers of the Baikalsk Pulp and Paper Mill applied to the Ministry of Social Development, Guardianship and Trusteeship of the Irkutsk Region for material assistance. The main reason for the applications is wage arrears dating back to January 2009 and severance pay upon dismissal. 145 applications have already been reviewed, of which 131 are recipients of targeted material assistance. 48 applicants need assistance in the form of food, 83 in the form of social benefits.
But social assistance alone cannot solve the problem - people need to be employed. Great work is also underway in this direction. Thus, on April 17, a large job fair was held. It was organized in Baikalsk by the Employment Center of the Slyudyansky District together with specialists from the Employment Service of the Irkutsk Region, and the employment centers of Angarsk, Irkutsk, Usolye-Sibirskoye, and the Irkutsk District.
23 employers from Baikalsk, Angarsk, Usolye-Sibirskoye, Irkutsk, the Slyudyansky and Irkutsk districts took part in the fair, presenting 267 vacant jobs. In total, more than 12,000 vacancies at enterprises in the Irkutsk Region, as well as in other regions of Russia, were offered to job seekers.
Of the 600 participants in the event, 162 received job referrals. Consultations on vocational training were provided to 110 applicants. 30 people signed up for vocational training groups, most of them with subsequent employment. 10 educational institutions from the city of Irkutsk took part in the presentation of educational institutions.
Specialists from the employment service authorities also provided consultations on vocational training and early retirement arrangements. Information was offered on professions competitive in the labor market and on the possibility of obtaining additional education, as well as on the possibility of moving to another area for the purpose of employment.
Many residents of Baikalsk are now looking for work in the regional center. A discounted commuter train to Irkutsk has been launched especially for them. The ticket price is 75 rubles.
Let us hope that the problems of Baikalsk’s residents will continue to receive attention. And we will keep following the development of the situation.