Bulgarian miners are set go out on strike in the coming weeks after the July 16 tragic death of four of their co-workers, announced a trade union representative.

Monday was a day of national mourning for the four workers at the Oranovo coal mines, who perished after a deadly collapse believed to have been caused by poor maintenance of the facility.

"There will be protests. We will be blocking highways and roads," stated Tuesday Vladimir Topalov, head of the miners' unit of Bulgarian national trade union Podkrepa.

He added that consultations will be launched to decide on the timing of the rallies, which might be called after the end of Parliament's recess, September 4.

"All coal producing companies in Bulgaria work under net losses, which affects both technologies used and workers' safety, because companies are trying to cut their spending," explained Topalov.

According to him, some of the demands of miners might require new legislation to better regulate the business.

The trade union representative added that unions are likely to also request a regulatory increase of the price of coal to boost companies' revenue.

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