Tehran Chamber of Commerce President Announced Cancellation of Weekend Holiday Increase; $8 to $10 Billion Damage from Thursday Closures

Mahmoud Najafi Arab, the President of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, stated today that the chambers of commerce were "generally opposed to increasing weekend holidays, especially the closure on Thursdays," as it reportedly causes "$8 to $10 billion in damage to the country annually." He expressed hope that the next government would have "more cooperation with the chambers of commerce" in this regard. The head of the Tehran Chamber of Commerce noted that the chambers made efforts to prevent the approval of the bill to increase holidays, which was disruptive to business, with a "national approach and perspective." He mentioned, "After the Guardian Council's disapproval of the Thursday closure, the Thursday holiday was also canceled." Previously, on June 2, while the Guardian Council had not yet commented on the parliament's resolution to add Saturday to the weekend closures in Iran, it was announced that the "High Supervisory Board" in the Expediency Discernment Council opposed Saturday closures. Hadi Tahan Nazif, the spokesperson for the Guardian Council, stated in a press conference that the review of the parliament's resolution was on the agenda, but no action had been taken yet. However, given the Expediency Discernment Council's comments, it seemed likely that this resolution would be rejected. After weeks of speculation regarding the addition of a day to the weekend in Iran, parliament representatives approved on May 15 that Fridays and Saturdays would be designated as weekend holidays. During the review of the civil service law amendment, parliament members agreed with 136 votes in favor, 66 against, and 3 abstentions to the main report of the social committee regarding the increase in weekend holidays. According to that resolution, Saturday would be a holiday, and the working hours of employees would be reduced from 44 to 40 hours per week. During that session, a proposal to close on Thursdays was also put to a vote, which was rejected by the representatives. The decision regarding the increase in weekend holidays in Iran had turned into a confrontation between opponents and supporters in recent weeks. In this context, a member of the previous parliament's presiding board, which approved this resolution, reported consulting with some "religious authorities" and stated that "the offices of three authorities" had no issue with the Saturday closure. The social committee had approved the addition of Saturday to the weekend holidays in its report, while opponents suggested Thursday closures and considered Saturday closures as following the "Jews." Mohsen Pirhadi, a member of the previous parliament's presiding board, stated that "despite the maneuvering and accusations from some critics and opponents, it became evident after thorough investigations that changing the holiday from 'Thursday and Friday' to 'Friday and Saturday' has no religious or legal prohibition and is considered a governmental decision that merely requires a determination and reform approach based on the interests and benefits of the country." Recently, Iranian media reported on correspondence between the President of the Iran Chamber of Commerce and Ali Khamenei to obtain a "government ruling" for Saturday closures instead of Thursdays to align holiday practices globally. The possibility of closing on Thursdays instead of Saturdays, which was the main reason for opposition to Saturday closures in Israel, has raised concerns among a significant number of economic activists. In this regard, the website "Khabar Online" reported that the previous resolution of the social committee had caused a wave of sadness among the private sector. They believe that by closing on Thursdays, "our gap with the world economy will become four days, and instead of compensating for our backwardness, we will fall further behind the world." Part of Article 17 of the Islamic Republic's Constitution states, "The official weekly holiday is Friday." The Expediency Discernment Council's opposition to adding Saturdays to the weekend; the ball is still in the Guardian Council's court. A member of the parliament's presiding board stated that they have consulted with the "offices of religious authorities" regarding adding Saturdays to the weekend. The ball regarding holidays has fallen into Khamenei's court; the Chamber of Commerce's request from the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic for Saturday closures. The parliament approved the generalities of the bill to increase weekend holidays and reduce working hours. The parliament added Saturdays to the weekend holidays; the ball is in the Guardian Council's court.