Minimum Wage for Workers in Iran Increased by 14.5%

The Supreme Labor Council of Iran has increased the minimum monthly wage for workers by 14.5%. Consequently, the minimum wage for workers in the country has reached 930,000 tomans per month. This increase was announced while the Wage Committee of 2017, composed of representatives from the government, employers, and labor organizations accepted by the government, had declared the livelihood basket for a working family to be 2,480,000 tomans. The minimum monthly wage for workers for the current year is 812,000 tomans. Previously, some independent labor organizations had called for the minimum wage to be raised to over 3 million tomans. Meanwhile, the Free Union of Iranian Workers demanded a wage of 4 million tomans for workers. According to two clauses of Article 41 of the Labor Law in Iran, ratified in 1990, the minimum monthly wage for workers should be determined based on the inflation rate and the cost of living for a working family. However, according to labor organizations and some media, the Supreme Labor Council has only considered the inflation rate in wage determination over the past decades. Reports indicate that employers and some government officials had previously pointed out that employers cannot afford to pay higher wages. In contrast, labor organizations in Iran stated that the government, as the largest employer in the country, is not interested in raising workers' wages. These organizations also noted that the cost of wages in production is between 7 to 13 percent. Meanwhile, according to Tasnim News Agency, the monthly housing allowance for workers has remained unchanged at 40,000 tomans. In this context, the head of the Relief Committee stated that 11 million Iranians are living below the poverty line, and the livelihood basket for workers has been declared to be 2,500,000 tomans. Protests by workers have occurred in several cities in Iran.