Determining Wages in Parliament Aimed at Reducing Protests; Minister of Labor's Move to Silence Workers

The Minister of Labor of the Islamic Republic believes that determining wages by the parliament will reduce "complaints" in this area; a stance that critics assess as silencing the voices of workers. The ILNA news agency, affiliated with the government organization "House of Workers," quoted Solat Mortazavi stating that "some members of the High Council of Labor always complain about the council's decisions, and to resolve these complaints, it is better for the Islamic Consultative Assembly to determine the minimum wage." The Minister of Labor first raised this issue after worker representatives left the wage determination meeting, which faced protests from the labor community. Some labor activists believe that Mortazavi aims to retaliate against the labor community's protests regarding his management style by eliminating the High Council of Labor and handing over matters to the parliament. Previously, Iranian media reported on the Minister of Labor's seriousness and pursuit of drafting and implementing a bill that some media outlets have labeled "anti-labor," assigning the determination of the minimum wage to the parliament and removing workers from the dispute. ILNA reported that the Minister of Labor, in part of his recent remarks, considered the parliament's acceptance to determine workers' wages to be greater than that of the "High Council of Labor" and raised the question of which group's acceptance the minister has in mind, and by what criteria does he firmly consider the parliament superior to the High Council of Labor in determining wages? These questions arose after Solat Mortazavi announced the final stages of the bill "Changing the Method of Determining the Minimum Wage of Workers" from next year and the transfer of decision-making to the parliament in the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare. The Minister of Labor claimed that throughout the 40-year history, the issue of determining the minimum wages of workers has always been contentious, and it seemed necessary for a body to decide on this matter that "has greater acceptance than the High Council of Labor, which we believe is the Islamic Consultative Assembly." This decision by the Minister of Labor was made after worker representatives left the last minimum wage determination meeting in protest and refused to sign the wage resolution for the year 1403. A member of the High Council of Labor stated: The government seeks to silence workers. Employers warn of a 10% reduction in workers' and employees' wages; House of Workers: We will respond. A step away from "dispossessing" workers in wage determination; an idea that the Minister of Labor is pursuing. The High Council of Labor is not looking to restore wages; the housing right will not increase. Workers' purchasing power has not been strengthened; the dollar value of wages has fallen. An 11 million wage against a 30 million livelihood; a union activist: The government has trampled on retirees' rights.