Protests and Marches by Nurses and Medical Staff Continue in at Least 5 Cities in Iran

Following the expansion of protests by nurses and healthcare staff, they held demonstrations and marches on Saturday, August 25, in the cities of Khorramabad, Sabzevar, Khomeini Shahr, Babol, and Isfahan. Protesters from public hospitals in Khorramabad and Babol chanted slogans such as "Nurse, shout out, demand your rights," and "An extra 20 tomans, shame on you." According to the Telegram channel "Civil Market Protest," nurses in Khorramabad marched from the university headquarters to the Lorestan governorate, chanting: "A nurse dies, but does not accept humiliation." In Isfahan, nurses and emergency medical personnel went on strike, demanding their professional and livelihood rights. Emergency staff from 115 in Isfahan also protested against their poor living conditions, chanting: "Enough of promises, our table is empty." Healthcare staff in Sabzevar, in Razavi Khorasan province, also staged sit-ins, and nurses at the 9 Dey Khomeini Hospital in this city gathered in protest. Concurrently, Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, the Minister of Health, announced that the total demands of the nurses amounted to 7.5 trillion tomans and promised that "all their rights and demands will be paid as soon as possible." Earlier, Ahmad Najatian, the head of the Nursing System Organization, had reported on August 21 the allocation of 7 trillion tomans to pay part of the nurses' overdue payments. In recent days, Zafarghandi has made contradictory statements regarding the nurses' protests. On Friday, September 1, despite having promised to resolve the protesters' issues "as soon as possible" just a day earlier, he stated: "I will pursue the financial expectations of nurses within the country's capacity." Furthermore, he mentioned that he had initiated discussions with the President and government members to enhance the professional identity and status of nurses. This comes as he stated on Thursday, September 1, without specifying a timeline for fulfilling the demands of striking and protesting nurses, that the costs to resolve the nurses' issues had been calculated and approved by the government and that "this money should gradually be given to universities and insurance companies." In another statement published on the Ministry of Health's website, Zafarghandi claimed that "the problem of accumulated demands from the nursing community will be resolved within the next two weeks." Over the years, Islamic Republic officials have consistently promised to meet the demands of protesters in response to labor protests, but in practice, only some of these promises have been fulfilled or not at all. Additionally, the nurses' demands are not limited to livelihood issues. Mohammad Sharifi Moghaddam, the Secretary-General of the Nurses' House, listed the nurses' requests, including the implementation of the tariff law, eliminating discrimination in bonus payments, and addressing issues such as mandatory overtime, staff shortages, difficult working conditions, and long shifts. Strikes and protests by nurses and healthcare workers have intensified since mid-August and have continued in at least 17 provinces across the country. Reports indicate that several protesters have been arrested on charges of "disturbing public order." Additionally, some protesting nurses have been summoned, and threatening messages have been sent to them. Nevertheless, the protests by nurses continue. Meanwhile, neither Masoud Pezeshkian, the head of the fourteenth government, nor Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, the Minister of Health, have made any mention of the security crackdowns on protesting nurses regarding their working and living conditions.