The Electric Union (UNE) published a call on its official page this Monday, urging the Cuban population to show gratitude towards the linemen by offering them "a glass of water or a little coffee" when they see them working in their neighborhoods.
The institutional message comes amid the worst energy crisis in the country's history and just days after two of those same workers were caught illegally selling electricity in Havana.
In its publication, the state entity described the work of the linemen as one that "weighs more because of the context than because of the task itself" and attributed the difficulties in the sector to "an energy siege that wears down," a euphemism the regime uses to refer to the U.S. embargo.
The text stated that workers "do not do it expecting applause or recognition, but rather are content with the grateful gesture from their communities".
The publication comes at a time of heightened social tension: the National Electric Power System (SEN) has collapsed five times in 2026, with a deficit that exceeded 2,341 MW on July 10, when only 935 MW were available against a demand of 3,100 MW.
Matanzas recorded blackouts of up to 87 consecutive hours in July; Granma experienced 72 hours; and Havana averaged between 15 and 35 hours daily without electricity, according to data from the monitoring dossier on the blackout crisis in Cuba.
The immediate context of the call for gratitude is particularly revealing: on July 16, residents of Calabazar, in the Boyeros municipality of Havana, caught in the act two linemen from UNE who were illegally selling electricity to private businesses while the residential neighborhood had been experiencing barely one hour of electricity per day for months.
The workers were intercepted in an intoxicated state, with bundles of cash and cases of beer inside the company’s official vehicle.
A neighbor identified as Isol G published the complaint on Facebook with the phrase that went viral: “They give it to whoever pays”.
The next day, UNE itself had to issue a statement acknowledging the incident, condemning that the actions "do not align with the conduct, ethics, and values" of its employees, and announcing legal measures.
It's not an isolated case: in 2024, three linemen in Mariel embezzled more than 21 million pesos using official vehicles; in June 2025, seven employees and 14 clients were convicted of fraud and bribery at the Electric Company of Havana; and in June 2026, illegal connections to prioritized circuits were detected in Guantánamo, while in the Mantilla neighborhood, there were offers to restore service in exchange for 200 dollars.
Parallelly, the linemen themselves work under conditions that have cost lives: since 2022, at least six workers have died from electrocution or falls. The most recent was Osmani Rosales Núñez, who passed away on June 14, 2026, in Cárdenas, Matanzas, and in September 2025, Cleivi Pujada Castro died in Artemisa while working on an unprotected line.
The energy crisis has unleashed an unprecedented cycle of protests: in June 2026, 107 street protests were recorded in Cuba, a historical record, and this Sunday, residents of Lawton, in Havana, held a new gathering demanding electricity.
The UNE's call to offer coffee and water to the linemen, published in the context of corruption scandals, workplace deaths, and massive protests, was received by many Cubans as a provocation and an attempt to divert attention from the failed management of the national electrical system.
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