Consequences of Drought and Economic Recession | Conversion of Pistachio Orchards to Charcoal Workshops; A Worker Falls into the Furnace

In the absence of precise and systematic government oversight on workshop safety, drought and severe economic recession have led to the repurposing of some workshops, making them even less safe. A farming orchard in Rafsanjan has been converted into a 'charcoal workshop,' resulting in the death of a worker in its furnace. According to the ILNA news agency, around 4 PM yesterday (Tuesday, January 2nd), a worker was involved in an accident while working in a charcoal workshop near the village of 'Bid Raviz' in Rafsanjan County, Kerman Province, due to 'falling into the charcoal furnace.' Rescue teams, after several hours of effort, could only retrieve the lifeless body of the worker from the furnace. Despite international warnings and high statistics of workplace fatalities in Iran, this sector still suffers from low government oversight to prevent 'work accidents.' Ehsan Sohrabi, a labor activist, stated on October 3rd that the actions of the Islamic Republic officials regarding workplace safety are merely performative, asserting that 'a government memorandum cannot prevent the death of workers' and that 'accidents in production units have not decreased.' This labor activist also noted that 'accidents in production units have not decreased' and attributed this to the ongoing conditions that lead to such incidents. He emphasized that only a 'small number' of workplace accidents are reported in the media, and many accidents 'do not even appear in official statistics.' On the other hand, drought and severe economic recession caused by the country's mismanagement have led to the closure of many businesses or the improper repurposing of some workshops, increasing risks for the workforce. In this context, according to ILNA, in recent years due to drought, 'some farmers and orchardists in the Rafsanjan region have turned to charcoal production.' The severe inflationary recession resulting from the wrong economic policies of the Islamic Republic governments in recent years has led to the bankruptcy of many small business owners, farmers, orchardists, livestock breeders, and owners of small production workshops. The lack of oversight by the responsible government body or trade union over these repurposings, the lack of training for workers, the failure of employers to provide safety equipment, and the non-standard nature of workshops have also contributed to the increase in workplace accidents. Meanwhile, due to the prevention of the official activities of independent labor unions and syndicates in Iran over the past four decades, there is no precise oversight or clear accountability regarding the status of labor contracts, safety, and health of workers in workshops. The lack of safety continues to claim workers' lives; the death of a worker due to falling from a building. Cheap lives in Iran! A union official: widespread deaths of construction workers due to bone and lung problems. The shadow of death accompanies workers these days; a worker died after falling from an electricity pole. The lack of safety for workers in Iran; annually, two thousand workers suffer from 'electrical burns.' Two incidents in a factory in Kashan; 95 workers suffered respiratory poisoning. A 4% increase in work-related fatalities in Mazandaran; 78 workers died in seven months. Bread at the cost of life; the continuation of workers' deaths due to the 'unsafe' nature of the work environment. The death of two workers and the injury of three others continue the insecurity of the work environment in Iran.