Rabiei: Wage Arrears of Workers at Hepco and AzarAb Will Be Paid Starting Thursday

The Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare announced that the payment of overdue wages for workers at AzarAb and Hepco Industries in Arak will begin on Thursday, October 6. Ali Rabiei stated in an interview with the state news agency IRNA on Wednesday, October 5, that the new caretaker of AzarAb Industries has been introduced in coordination with the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade and has met with the company's employees. Rabiei added, "The new management of this company is required to implement structured planning for quality production, customer attraction, and close communication with previous customers of this company for the survival of AzarAb." He also declared the creation of job security in public and private companies and institutions as the "main approach of the government." Meanwhile, according to reports from Fars and Tasnim news agencies, Rabiei stated that other demands of Hepco and AzarAb workers will be settled by the end of the month. These reports did not mention the amount of wage arrears for the approximately two thousand workers at these two factories. Previously, some reports indicated that the wages of these workers had not been paid for four to six months. In this context, the Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare did not address the workers' demand for the return of ownership of these factories to the government. The appointment of a caretaker for AzarAb Industries in Arak occurred after protests by workers and the arrest of its CEO. On Tuesday, September 19, a number of workers from the AzarAb and Hepco factories gathered in separate locations in Arak. On the same day, photos and videos of riot police confronting these gatherings and images of workers who had broken legs or sustained injuries from the police attack were published. The riot police's assault on the workers drew criticism from several members of parliament and various labor organizations, such as the Free Workers Union of Iran, the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, and the Syndicate of Workers of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company. Following this, Kiumars Azizi, the police chief of Markazi province, announced that the CEO of AzarAb was summoned and arrested by the police on Sunday, October 2, by a judicial order. Meanwhile, Abolfazl Pourufaei, the head of the Coordination Council of Islamic Labor Councils in Markazi province, stated that the CEO of AzarAb was "one of the factors of unrest in recent days in the province." He noted, "After the workers' gathering and the unfortunate events that occurred, the factory officials deposited the workers' wages of 1.8 million tomans, which they could have deposited even before the workers' protests." These workers, who own part of the company's shares, also protested the manner in which the general assembly of the company was held on September 26 and 27, claiming that the law was not followed in conducting this meeting. According to ILNA news agency, a representative of the Stock Exchange also criticized the manner of conducting this meeting. Meanwhile, some websites reported that the representative of the Stock Exchange left the general assembly due to ambiguities regarding the Agricultural Bank's ownership of some shares of this company and the unclear status of other owners. In the meantime, Mahmoud Zamani Qomi, the governor of Markazi province, stated that after holding the general assembly of AzarAb Industries, actions will be taken to arrange the company's debts to social security, tax affairs, and the clearance of raw materials without the need for a bank guarantee. Additionally, in the second meeting of the ministers of industry, mine, labor, and economy on Saturday, October 1, a resolution regarding the problems of Hepco and AzarAb in Arak was approved. According to this report, in this meeting, regarding the status of Hepco, "the Privatization Organization was mandated to pay all the debts of this factory to the workers in the coming days and to supervise the performance of the new shareholder of Hepco." Meanwhile, the Iran newspaper reported that the total value of the Hepco company and factory is 400 billion tomans, but according to the governor of Markazi province, the company's debts to banks amount to 800 billion tomans. According to ILNA news agency, Nader Qazipour, a member of parliament from Urmia, on Sunday referred to clauses of the contract for the transfer of Hepco, stating, "According to the contract, Hepco should have been transferred for 300 billion tomans and a bank guarantee of 150 billion tomans, but in this case, the transfer took place with only a payment of 10 million tomans." He stated that this company was transferred to an individual who had bank, tax, and social security debts and was banned from leaving the country.