Protests by Laid-off Workers of National Steel Group Escalate with Security Forces' Confrontation

The Telegram channel "Independent Voice of Workers of National Steel Group" reported that security personnel at National Steel attacked the protest gathering of laid-off workers today, Saturday, April 18. According to the report, the laid-off workers were staging a sit-in at one of the company's entrances, demanding their reinstatement, when they were confronted by security forces. Reports indicate that on April 4, the management of the National Industrial Steel Group in Ahvaz dismissed several workers following protests and strikes by the company's employees in the last months of the previous year. The Telegram channel confirmed that another group of protesting workers is 'on the verge of being laid off.' The report states that 'in the last days of Esfand 1402, several colleagues were dismissed under the pretext of contract expiration, and others were transferred to Ghadir Stadium to also be queued for dismissal.' Workers at the National Industrial Steel Group have repeatedly protested and gone on strike over poor working conditions and the lack of legal minimums in recent months. This industrial unit has also been without an 'Islamic Labor Council,' one of the labor organizations recognized by the Islamic Republic, which the labor law passed in 1990 emphasizes the necessity of establishing in workplaces. The workers of this production unit, currently managed and overseen by Bank Melli Iran, have repeatedly protested against mismanagement and harmful decision-making for the organization and its employees. The protesting workers of this large production unit criticized the 'slave-like attitude' of provincial, banking, and corporate officials towards workers in a statement at the beginning of Dey last year, deeming the managers' 'delaying tactics' as insulting. Protests by workers of the National Industrial Steel Group in Ahvaz have been ongoing, with various groups, including steel workers, nurses in Shiraz, and retired telecommunications workers in several cities, staging gatherings. On the fifth day of the strike at the National Steel Group in Ahvaz, workers prevented the entry of managers and the exit of products.