In Mykolaiv, employees of «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» are complaining about systematic delays in the payment of their wages

«Zoria»-«Mashproekt». Photo: NikVesti

Employees of the state-owned strategic defence enterprise «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» in Mykolaiv, which is part of the «Ukroboronprom» concern, are once again reporting delays in the payment of wages.

One of the company’s employees told NikVesti about this on condition of anonymity.

According to him, the delays are systematic and affect both advance payments and basic wages.

«Delays in advance and salary payments have become systematic for us. An advance was due on 22 April, but it didn’t happen, and tomorrow is payday — that won’t happen either. We’ve been told that April’s wages will be paid at the end of May. This hits families particularly hard where both partners work at the company. The payment schedule has been constantly disrupted this year,» said the employee.

As reported by NikVesti on 10 and 18 March, the company’s employees had not received their wages for over a month. At that time, according to the source, only 50% of the advance payment was made in March, and people still did not receive their monthly wages.

Following the publication of the article, employees were paid their February wages with a delay of over a month.

As a reminder, on 16 December 2025, we reported that employees of the state-owned strategic defence enterprise «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» in Mykolaiv had not received their wages for two months. At the time, an employee of the enterprise told us that in November, employees had been paid only 25% of their advance, and they had still not received their monthly wages.

Subsequently, the November wages were paid in two instalments: the first on 18 December, i.e. two days after our publication, and the second on 25 December.

Embezzlement at «Zoria»-«Mashproekt»

«Zoria»-«Mashproekt», archive photo: NikVesti

As a reminder, in September 2023, NABU and the SAPO announced that four former directors of the «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» plant and one businessman were suspected of embezzling 1.32 billion hryvnias. The investigation established that the management of the «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» plant, which exported its own products abroad, had organised a scheme to embezzle funds from the state-owned enterprise. To this end, a series of agency agreements were concluded with a non-resident company, under which it was allegedly to provide services to identify and negotiate with potential buyers of the state-owned enterprise’s products with a view to concluding relevant foreign trade contracts with them.

In January 2024, the bail amount for Konstantyn Kartoshkin, the former CEO of the state-owned enterprise «Zoria»-«Mashproekt Gas Turbine Construction Research and Production Complex», was reduced by 1 million hryvnias.

In May 2024, the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court dismissed for a second time an appeal against the notice of suspicion served on Andrii Khomenko, the former CEO of the state-owned enterprise «Zoria»-«Mashproekt Gas Turbine Construction Research and Production Complex».

A Mykolaiv resident won ₴1 million in a lawsuit against «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» following his dismissal

It should be noted that the employee had worked at the enterprise since 2010 and had held the position of workshop manager since 2018. From June 2022, he received no salary and was barred from entering the workplace without explanation. He learned that, by an order dated 20 May 2022, the company had suspended his employment contract on the basis of Article 13 of the Law of Ukraine «On the Organisation of Labour Relations under Martial Law».

In court, the claimant argued that he had not received any notification of the suspension of his employment contract, as the company had continued its operations and his post had not been made redundant. Consequently, he considered the suspension of his employment contract to be unlawful and demanded its revocation, as well as payment of wages for the period from June 2022.

As a result, the company «Zoria»-«Mashproekt» will be ordered to pay average earnings for the period of forced absence from work amounting to 1.2 million hryvnias.