Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev extended a state of emergency in Zhanaozen, the Mangistau region of Kazakhstan, to January 31 after the violent clashes between oil workers and police broke out in the town in December, the president’s decree said.

The state of emergency introduced after the protest in December was due to expire on January 5, 2012.

Violence broke out in southwestern Kazakh oil town of Zhanaozen on December 16, leaving 16 people dead. The workers had been protesting for higher wages. A state of emergency was declared in the region following the clashes between striking oil workers and police in the town.

In January more than 1,000 fired workers who had taken part in the clashes applied for job. The head of the government commission Umirzak Shukeev said that all the fired oil workers would get work, RIA Novosti reported.