Continued Strike of Project Workers; Several Contractors in South Pars Arrested

ILNA news agency reported on Wednesday, May 3rd, the continuation of protests by project and contract workers in Assaluyeh and Kangan to pursue their professional demands. Project and contract workers have been on strike for several days with demands including a 79% wage increase, a work system of 20 days on and 10 days off, elimination of discrimination, freedom of association, and improvement of health conditions in accommodations and food. According to several labor and professional organizations, these workers have left their workplaces and returned home after striking in over 110 units across several provinces in Iran. Meanwhile, ILNA noted that 'the claim of the CEO of the South Pars Special Economic Zone to replace protesting workers with new ones has not been successful,' adding: 'As labor activists have repeatedly stated, finding four thousand skilled workers who can perform the routine tasks of skilled project workers is not an easy task and may not even be feasible.' Previously, Sekavat Asadi, CEO of the Special Economic Zone Organization, announced that 'about a thousand workers have been replaced with new individuals, and on Saturday, May 9th, three thousand new forces will replace workers who left their jobs and did not return within the specified deadline.' ILNA quoted several project workers from South Pars stating: 'We will continue to demand until discrimination is eliminated and wage justice is established.' Meanwhile, Fars news agency, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reported on Wednesday the summons and arrest of several contractors involved in the development projects of South Pars by security agents. Fars labeled the arrested individuals as 'offenders' and cited their arrest as being in connection with supporting the workers' strikes. This news agency did not provide details about the nature of this 'support,' nor did it mention names, numbers, or charges against the detainees, stating that the process of summons and arrests will continue in the coming days. In recent weeks, protests and strikes by workers in various cities of Iran have increased, especially in response to poor living conditions and the wage gap with the poverty line. Following the rise in protests and strikes, the wave of summons and arrests of workers and labor activists has also intensified. Additionally, see: Continued strikes; contract and temporary workers demand the elimination of the 'contractor mafia.' Security pressures and the arrest of workers and labor activists continue while Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, acknowledged some of the workers' issues in his recent speech on 'International Workers' Day,' but did not mention the security crackdowns on labor activists. United Nations reporters and human rights organizations consider such arrests to be 'arbitrary' and have repeatedly called on the Iranian authorities to respect the right to peaceful assembly for the people of Iran. Furthermore, unions, federations, and labor organizations have repeatedly condemned the Islamic Republic's policies towards workers and wage earners while supporting the workers' demands.