With parliamentary elections a week away, President Boris Yeltsin ordered the government Sunday to figure out how to overcome constant delays in paying wages, pensions and other benefits.
The move came after tens of thousands of workers held a one-day strike, demanding billions of rubles in back wages and casting a shadow on the government's optimistic view of the economy.Aides say Yeltsin has been swamped by letters and telegrams from miners and other state employees complaining of wage delays that sometimes last for months.
The government wants to play down Russia's economic concerns ahead of Dec. 17 parliamentary elections, in which free-marketers seem to be in trouble nationwide. Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin heads the pro-government party Our Home is Russia, which is conducting an expensive, high-profile campaign.
The order to the government was one of several decrees signed Sunday by Yeltsin at the sanatorium outside Moscow where he is recovering from heart trouble.
He also signed a decree recognizing composer Georgy Sviridov for service to the country, and named Dec. 17 Strategic Rocket Forces Day.