Loo rolls replace roubles as Russian workers' bonus

Workers have a raw deal in Russia's cashstrapped manufacturing industries plagued by acute cash flow problems. Employees are fortunate to get paid on time, if at all, with many having to accept some form of barter in exchange for their labour. A press agency report this week tells the bizarrely amusing story of a group of workers at a clock factory who, having received a paper bonus in lieu of cash, needed three days to get the stuff home. They didn't feel much richer as the bonus was not in company stock but in toilet paper, each individual receiving about 150 rolls. Additionally, as the product was of low quality, it proved difficult to either spend or earn a rouble. The humour of the situation was lost on desperate workers as shops refused to exchange food for loo rolls. One employee offered her stock of coarse grey paper as a rent substitute to a bewildered municipal housing authority. The government has long pledged to ensure that the nation's workforce are paid in a regular and orthodox manner. So far Boris has yet to deliver.