Protests Over Living Conditions by Retired Educators and Oil and Gas Workers

On Tuesday, January 1, protests over living conditions took place in Iran with gatherings of retired teachers in at least three provinces: Fars, Mazandaran, and Kermanshah, as well as protests by oil and gas workers in Bushehr and Khuzestan provinces. According to reports received by Voice of America and news shared on social media, retired educators in Fars, Mazandaran, and Kermanshah took to the streets holding placards with their demands and slogans, chanting against the inefficiency of the Islamic Republic officials. In Shiraz, the retired protesters chanted: 'Plant trees where the men of politics sit, so the air can be fresh.' In Mazandaran, they shouted: 'Iran, prosperous, what has happened to you?' In Kermanshah, the retired educators chanted: 'Whoever confronts the people of the pen will fall.' Simultaneously, a group of oil and gas workers in Khuzestan and Bushehr held protests. Based on a citizen video report published by the Telegram channel Civil Protest Market, a group of workers from the Fajr Jam refinery in Bushehr, holding placards with their demands, chanted: 'Fair wages are our undeniable right.' Dozens of contract workers from the Gachsaran Oil and Gas Company in Khuzestan also gathered at the site, demanding 'conversion of company workers' status and a fair wage and benefits system.' Their demands included 'reviewing and properly implementing the job classification plan and fair wage payment system,' 'creating job security,' and 'adhering to previous agreements, especially regarding earned leave.' Additionally, on Tuesday, a group of employees from the Agricultural Jihad Organization in Ilam protested by spreading an empty tablecloth to highlight existing living problems, chanting: 'A jihadist dies, but does not accept humiliation' and 'The cry of every jihadist is justice and freedom.' The expansion of protests among various groups, including retirees, workers from different industries, teachers, investors, nurses, and healthcare workers, indicates the increasing living problems in Iran and the indifference of the Islamic Republic officials. In response to these protests, the Iranian government has intensified security and judicial crackdowns on independent labor activists, teachers, and retirees, with several of these activists currently imprisoned on security charges. The continuation of living protests in Iran coincides with escalating disputes between Israel and the Islamic Republic, and turmoil in Iran's financial markets continues. Amid the financial turmoil in Iran and the dollar surpassing 82,000 tomans, Prince Reza Pahlavi referred to this situation as 'the latest achievement of the incompetent regime of the Islamic Republic and the puppet government of Ali Khamenei,' emphasizing that 'strikes and civil disobedience alongside street protests are an effective way to bring this regime to its knees.' He also urged Iranians to 'support and stand by each other's protests beyond sectoral demands,' stating that 'it is through the solidarity and unity of all segments of the Iranian nation that we can achieve the greater goal of freedom and saving Iran.' Furthermore, Salman Zakir, a member of the Industries Commission of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, warned on Sunday, January 9, about the possibility of 'famine' in Iran, stating that if 'imbalances continue at this level, the likelihood of famine exists.' Economist Jamshid Asadi told Voice of America that the trend of the rial's fall against the dollar is beyond the control of the Islamic Republic officials, and 'the Iranian economy is unable to manage the values of the country’s capital and finance under the rule of the clerical system. This decline has occurred, and there is no safety net.'