Labor Union Criticizes Medicalian Government's Efforts to Undermine Workers' Livelihoods

On Thursday, February 11, the Free Workers Union of Iran accused Ahmad Meidari, the Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, along with the Ministers of Economy, Finance, and Industry, of trying to "pave the way for further encroachments on the empty tables of workers." This labor organization stated in its Telegram channel that following Meidari's televised interview on February 8 regarding a "new and effective method for determining wages," he recently called on labor experts, labor unions, labor activists, and employers to submit their "expert opinions" for determining next year's wages by February 20. The Free Workers Union of Iran pointed out that the minister's statements came after he proposed three sessions titled "Expert Work on Determining the Minimum Wage Model," which resulted in his preferred proposals such as "regional wages." According to the report, from the day Meidari presented his program in Parliament and received a vote of confidence, "it became clear that despite his deceptive phrases about justice and his belief in the welfare state idea," he, along with the two ministers of Economy and Finance and Industry, are working together in various ways to facilitate further encroachments on the empty tables of workers. The Free Workers Union of Iran noted that now, on the eve of the New Year and at a time when the minimum wage for the coming year should be determined, Meidari, as a representative of the government, is struggling to determine the minimum wage for the coming year and is trying to leave the minimum wage issue unanswered until the last moment of the year through further deception. The report stated that he is also trying to prepare the ground for implementing policies such as "regional wages," "wages based on professions," and "linking productivity and wages in the labor market" and to prepare society and workers for the implementation of these policies in the coming years. Critics and opponents have emphasized that such proposals violate Article 41 of the Labor Law, and the government of Masoud Medicalian has no right to take actions contrary to this legal article. In this regard, Nasrollah Bazvand, the legal and parliamentary deputy of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, expressed hope on Wednesday, February 10, that the Supreme Labor Council would determine the workers' wages for the coming year "differently than in previous years." According to the state-run news agency IRNA, Bazvand attempted to downplay the government's role in the Supreme Labor Council's decisions regarding the determination of the minimum wage, stating, "We are looking to determine wages realistically; we must consider the livelihood of workers, and if this issue is ignored, we will lose productivity at work." This government official did not explain what he meant by the term "realistic." Meanwhile, Ali Asghar Ahaniha, a representative of employers, stated on Tuesday that "in the current economic war, it is not possible to expect all household expenses to be covered by wages." The Free Workers Union of Iran also emphasized that Meidari's deception occurs at a time when even state media are forced to admit to a more than 400% decline in workers' wages over just ten years, which has driven workers to the depths of absolute poverty. To restore the purchasing power that workers' wages had in 2014, today, each minimum-wage worker with two children should receive nearly 49 million tomans. However, what such a worker receives at the end of the month is only 10 million and 900 thousand tomans. This labor organization added that in such conditions, when the lives of all workers and wage earners in society are at stake, we will not tolerate this bullying and anti-labor policies reminiscent of slavery. The low wages in Iran have been one of the reasons for the increase in protests by workers and other wage earners in various regions of Iran. These protests have been on the rise in recent years despite the security and judicial crackdowns by the Islamic Republic.