Protests by Hundreds of Workers in Ahvaz, Takestan, and Tehran Over Unpaid Wages

Reports from Iran indicate that hundreds of workers have gathered or gone on strike at factories in Ahvaz, Qazvin, Takestan, and Tehran, protesting the non-payment of their wages for several months. Meanwhile, the union of workers at the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company reported that drivers of this company turned on their bus lights on Sunday in protest against the non-payment of their overdue claims. According to ILNA news agency, hundreds of workers from the National Industrial Steel Group in Ahvaz marched from Kianpars Square to the Khuzestan Governorate building on Sunday morning, March 6, protesting the 'indifference of factory managers to their overdue claims.' The Free Workers' Union of Iran reported that the slogans chanted by workers during their march and gathering included 'If our account is not filled, Ahvaz will become a hell' and 'The factory is shut down, they don’t pay wages' and 'Death to the worker, greetings to the oppressor.' A new wave of protests by workers of the National Industrial Steel Group began last Sunday when they prevented the loading of trucks. Some protesting workers also chanted 'Death to the worker – greetings to the oppressor' during Friday prayers in Ahvaz, a slogan that was widely reflected on social media as a sarcastic protest against their unaddressed demands. The National Industrial Steel Group includes steel manufacturing, Kowsar rolling, rebar rolling, pipe manufacturing, and machinery manufacturing, employing about 4,000 workers, at least three months of whose wages have not been paid. The non-payment of wages has led to protests, strikes, gatherings, and marches by workers at the factories of the National Industrial Steel Group. This is occurring while, according to ILNA, 'officials of the National Industrial Steel Group and Khuzestan Province have ignored the protests and demands of the workers.' Among the other demands of the workers of the National Industrial Steel Group is clarification on how their March wages and bonuses will be paid. The National Industrial Steel Group in Ahvaz was one of the companies belonging to Amir Mansour Arya Investment Group, which was temporarily managed by the judiciary following a 3,000 billion tomans embezzlement case. Subsequently, ownership of this large industrial complex was entrusted to the National Bank due to its debts, and finally, ownership was transferred in November of this year to Abdolreza Mousavi, CEO of Zagros Airlines. Abdolreza Mousavi, owner of Zagros Airlines and Esteghlal Ahvaz Club, announced on July 1 this year in an interview with the state news agency IRNA that he had signed a memorandum of understanding to purchase 28 Airbus aircraft, stating that Zagros Airlines would acquire all these aircraft from Airbus on a lease-to-own basis. Previously, the newspaper Haft Sobh had reported on June 3 last year regarding major hoteliers in Iran, mentioning that Abdolreza Mousavi owns the Dariush Hotel in Kish and the Dolphin Park in Kish. Earlier, the private employer of the National Industrial Steel Group had reacted to a previous strike by workers on their Instagram page, stating that 'production was halted for two days due to the provocation of some inside and outside the company.' According to ILNA, citing workers from the National Industrial Steel Group, 'the new employer does not have the financial capability to pay the workers' wages, and during this time, due to the indifference of officials, the problems of this factory have increased, and the promises made by officials have led nowhere.' Meanwhile, ILNA reported that a group of workers from the 'Qazvin Steel' and 'Arman Shafaq' factories in Qazvin Province went on strike on Sunday morning in protest against the non-payment of several months of their wage arrears and gathered in front of the Takestan Governorate building. The main demands of these workers are the payment of three months of wages and end-of-year bonuses. Additionally, the insurance premiums for the workers of Qazvin Steel and Arman Shafaq have not been paid to the Social Security Organization since November. According to this report, the issue of unpaid wages for the workers of Qazvin Steel and Arman Shafaq began after the responsibility for these two units was transferred to the Silk Road Company. At the same time, each of the workers at these two factories is owed between two to three million tomans from their former employer for bonuses, severance pay from previous years, and overtime. In the meantime, according to the state news agency IRNA, dozens of workers from the Tehran Shahdad Dairy Industries (Shir Varna) gathered at the factory demanding their overdue wages. IRNA did not provide details on the protests and demands of the workers at the Tehran Shahdad Dairy Industries, stating that this unit is on the verge of closure due to financial problems and that the factory officials have repeatedly taken measures to downsize. On Saturday, 100 employees of the Ahah Company in Tehran, representing a thousand personnel of this unit, gathered in front of the company's headquarters in Tehran. According to ILNA, they protested against the non-payment of their seven months of wages. The Ahah Company is involved in the repair and renovation of Tehran's metro lines. In this context, Mohammad Alaei, CEO of the Ahah Company, told ILNA that an agreement was signed with the workers in the presence of the head of the Vanak police station, in which he committed to pay three months of overdue wages and bonuses to the workers and employees before the end of March. Previously, reports from various news agencies and labor websites indicated protests, gatherings, or strikes by employees at the Ilam Gas Refinery, workers at the Gholaman Dam in North Khorasan, the Iran But Service Company in Kish, HEPKOO in Arak, Saman Tile in Boroujerd, Haft Tappeh Sugarcane, contract workers at the Abadan Refinery, company forces at the East Azerbaijan Road and Transportation Administration, workers at the Rangin Factory in Semnan, the Parks and Green Spaces Organization of Yasouj Municipality, the Taban Shahr Construction Company in Birjand, and contract workers in the Mahshahr Petrochemical Special Economic Zone in recent days.