A Nurses' Union Activist: 'The Ministry of Health' and 'Medical Mafia' Hinder the Implementation of the 'Nursing Services Tariff Law'

Mohammad Sharifi-Moghadam, the Secretary-General of the Iranian Nurses House, stated that public and governmental hospitals force nurses to work mandatory overtime for only 20,000 tomans per hour, while the pay difference between doctors and nurses is 100 times. Sharifi-Moghadam told the news website 'Didban' that one of the main demands of nurses is the full and proper implementation of the 'Nursing Services Tariff Law,' which was approved by the parliament in 2007 but has not been fully implemented to date. This union activist noted that nurses are the only group whose services have not been tariffed, and with the approval of this law, specific tariffs should have been defined for all nursing services. According to Sharifi-Moghadam, 'However, in the thirteenth government, this law was implemented in a flawed and unprofessional manner, and only a fixed tariff per hospital bed was determined,' while a separate tariff should have been specified for each nursing service. The Secretary-General of the Iranian Nurses House emphasized the professional protests and highlighted the significant pay disparity between doctors and nurses, stating that nurses are also 'demanding justice in the health system.' Sharifi-Moghadam mentioned that while 'nurses in the operating rooms of public hospitals receive about 3 million tomans monthly, doctors working in the same section receive several hundred million tomans.' He added that such a disparity in pay between doctors and nurses does not exist in any country, and the nursing community's demand is for their services to be tariffed in the same way as medical services. Another issue raised by nurses is the improper implementation of the 'Clinical Staff Productivity Improvement Law,' which aimed to reduce nurses' working hours in hospitals due to their job difficulties. He reminded that 'this law has also never been fully implemented, and nurses are still forced to work mandatory overtime for very low wages.' Sharifi-Moghadam stressed that mandatory overtime is not only due to staff shortages but also due to the improper implementation of this law, which has caused 'nurses to spend even more hours in hospitals than before.' This union activist listed the demands of protesters and strikers in recent weeks, stating that 'Iranian nurses are calling for an increase in special overtime payments, the elimination of mandatory overtime, and the hiring of more nursing graduates in public and governmental hospitals. They also demand retirement after 25 years of work with full pay and benefits, in accordance with the law on hard and harmful jobs.' According to Sharifi-Moghadam, the failure to implement these laws is due to 'mismanagement by the Ministry of Health and the influence of the medical mafia,' which has hindered the proper enforcement of laws. In recent years, officials of the Islamic Republic have always promised to fulfill the demands of protesters in response to professional protests, but in practice, some of these promises have been partially fulfilled or not realized at all. Moreover, the demands of nurses are not limited to livelihood issues. Strikes and gatherings of nurses and healthcare workers have intensified since mid-August and have continued in at least 17 provinces across the country. Reports indicate that several protesters have been arrested on charges of 'disturbing public order.' Additionally, some protesting nurses have been summoned, and threatening messages have been sent to them. Nevertheless, nurses' protests have continued. So far, neither Masoud Pezeshkian, the head of the fourteenth government, nor Mohammadreza Zafarghandi, the Minister of Health, have mentioned the security measures taken against protesting nurses regarding their working and living conditions. The details and reasons for the expansion of strikes among workers and nurses in Iran are discussed by Roozbeh Boulaheri. Gatherings of Iranians residing in Hamburg in support of protesting nurses in Iran continue. On the line: from Pezeshkian's silence during the nurses' strike to the increase in executions in Iran. Protests and marches by nurses and healthcare staff in at least five cities in Iran continued. Workers of the 'Arghavan Gostar' petrochemical company in Ilam province went on strike in solidarity with 100 laid-off workers. Conflicting statements followed the promise of 'quick resolution' of nurses' problems; the Minister of Health stated that financial expectations would be pursued within capacity.