Inspector of the Construction Workers' Association Confirms the Termination of Insurance for Hundreds of Thousands of Construction Workers by the Social Security Organization

Abbas Shiri, an inspector from the Construction Workers' Association, dismissed the claim of insuring 70,000 construction workers as false and criticized the Social Security Organization, stating, "If the insurance of workers is valid, show us the documents!" According to ILNA news agency, in response to the recent statement from the Social Security Organization denying the termination of insurance for "300 to 400 thousand construction workers during the government," Shiri questioned how "with these inspections, there could be 300 to 400 thousand non-existent workers whose insurance should have been terminated?!" The inspector rejected the claim of the legality of the workers' filtering process by the Social Security Organization, arguing that the agents employed by the private sector and brokerage lack the necessary expertise. He noted that they charge around 70,000 tomans for their calls, and each inspector who can terminate more insurances receives a higher commission. He also emphasized that the insurance inspectors of this organization "easily label construction workers as non-existent to receive more commissions," adding that they only visit the construction site once, and if a worker is absent for any reason that day, they disregard them and terminate their insurance. The inspector called for the participation of civil labor organizations in distinguishing real workers from non-existent ones, stating that inspections should adhere to "tripartism": "In an inspection in a county, there should be the inspector from the Social Security General Directorate, the inspector from the Social Security branch, and the inspector from the Construction Workers' Association present." Previously, the Social Security Organization, while confirming the termination of construction workers' insurance, described this action as a type of "filtering real construction workers from those" who "unjustly benefited from government support in this area." The organization claimed that this filtering of construction workers is legal and stated that this "is not a new action and is one of the legal duties and missions of this organization." According to this report, labor activists have repeatedly protested against the unconventional inspection methods of the Social Security Organization, considering it "part of a cunning plan to reduce the burden of costs arising from the insurance of construction workers." Recently, several labor activists and retirees issued statements on the occasion of International Workers' Day, May 1, criticizing the "anti-labor policies of the government" and emphasizing the necessity of "united action, organization, and mobilization" of workers and wage earners to change the current situation in Iran. According to these statements, dire living conditions such as wages three times below the poverty line, delayed wage payments, lack of job security, rising inflation, and decreasing purchasing power have put tens of millions of workers and their families under pressure. A letter from labor activists to global trade unions: Demand the release of imprisoned workers in Iran. The judiciary's response to the death sentence issued for Mahmoud Mehrabi, a political prisoner: The ruling is preliminary and subject to appeal. Hundreds of activists called for the "unconditional" release of Anisha Asadollahi and Keyvan Mohtadi.