Low Wages Fail to Attract Workforce; Crisis in Labor Supply in Industries

With the widening gap between income and living costs in Iran, experts have pointed out the lack of attractiveness of job offers to job seekers and the workforce, stating that many companies currently need labor, but the workforce is unwilling to work for the current wages. According to ILNA news agency, Hamid Reza Ghaznavi, Secretary General of the Iranian Entrepreneurs Association, said on Thursday, March 7, "Today, we have a human resource problem in our industry. We used to rank second or third in the world in terms of human resource cost index, but we have completely lost this advantage." He stated that it is not worthwhile for the workforce to accept such working conditions for the current wages. According to the Secretary General of the Iranian Entrepreneurs Association, a system must be designed for economic progress and development in which workers benefit from the profits of the organization to increase productivity as well. Ahmad Alavi, an economist and university professor in Stockholm, stated in an interview with Voice of America that when wages do not meet basic living needs, workers prefer not to work. He mentioned that many workers are seeking to migrate to neighboring countries, especially skilled workers for whom demand is high. This university professor emphasized that statistics show job seekers are not interested in being hired at current wages as it is not economically justified, and blank contracts have violated the material and moral rights of workers. Alavi also stated that when wage levels are this low, the workforce seeks incomes that can cover their daily expenses. Meanwhile, the problems arising in the livelihood sector and low wages have made migration attractive for workers, to the extent that a member of the Supreme Labor Council stated that "even the simple workforce of the country is migrating." Mohsen Bagheri emphasized that it is unclear why the government should have four representatives in the Supreme Labor Council; only one representative from the Ministry of Labor is sufficient. He considered the decrease in wage value as a factor in reduced productivity at work and stated that currently, in neighboring countries, wages are being paid that we are even facing the migration of simple labor from Iran. Reports indicate that the gap between wages and the cost of the livelihood basket has increased in recent years, leading workers to demand wage increases to the level of the minimum cost of the livelihood basket, which has been suggested to be up to 70%. The state news agency IRNA reported that surveys show heavy and exhausting work, physical and psychological damage from hard jobs, lack of job security, the workforce lacking sufficient expertise and skill, interest in false but profitable jobs, not receiving the legal minimum wages and benefits, rising inflation, decreasing purchasing power of workers, and the lack of proportionality between the difficulty of work and received wages are major reasons for individuals' reluctance to work in industrial units and then services. Earlier, the newspaper Quds published in Mashhad also wrote that "there is work, but no workers." According to this newspaper, while production units in industrial parks complain about the lack of a suitable business environment due to frequent power outages, lack of water, and many other obstacles to production, the shortage of labor has also plagued some producers of production units, to the point that many of these units have turned to employment agencies for help. The report emphasized that "conditions have reached a point where even the labor law wages, bonuses, years of service, entitlement to production increase bonuses, legal leave, transportation services, and even considering job classification, and receiving lunch at a very low amount... can no longer encourage job seekers to work in factories; so much so that now their job advertisements fill the virtual space, channels, and websites related to production units every day." The news agency Noor News, affiliated with the Supreme National Security Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran, also described the current conditions in the labor market: the increase in living costs and the low wages approved by the Supreme Labor Council have led labor activists to believe that educated and uneducated youth are not inclined to engage in productive and manufacturing work. According to Noor News, one of the concerns of young people when seeking jobs is the low wages, as the Ministry of Labor's salary does not cover expenses, and consequently, they turn to false jobs to meet their costs. Jafar Azimzadeh: The minimum wage for workers has been frozen against inflation. Criticism of the Minister of Labor's "invention" to determine wages based on industry continues. Wages based on industry and province; a union activist: it is detrimental to workers. Criticism of the wage scheme based on industry and province: it will increase tensions. Abdeh Tabrizi: Wages must increase in accordance with inflation.