The Endless Cycle of Worker Deaths in Iran; A 63-Year-Old Security Guard Burns to Death and a 65-Year-Old Worker Dies from a Fall

Iranian workers face deadly risks daily due to a lack of precise government oversight and the absence of independent labor organizations. In one day, a worker dies from a fire in a security cabin in Nishapur, and another worker falls from a building in Mashhad. According to a report on November 7 by the ILNA news agency, a 63-year-old worker lost his life in a fire incident at a construction project located in the 'Cultural Town' of Nishapur. The cabin, which had become a place for 'security and rest' for workers, caught fire for 'unknown reasons.' It is reported that the worker was 'trapped' inside the cabin during the fire and died from burns. Despite numerous domestic and international warnings regarding the high number of workplace accidents, reports of worker fatalities and injuries continue, such as the death of a worker in Dehgolan, Kurdistan province, or the deaths of two workers at a power plant in early November. Additionally, reports published today, November 7, indicate that a construction worker in the 'Abdol-Motaleb Boulevard' area of Mashhad also died while working in a building due to a 'fall from height.' According to ILNA, this worker, who was around '65 years old,' fell due to 'lack of safety equipment,' and rescue workers transported his body to the hospital, but he succumbed to his 'severe injuries.' On October 17, the website 'Rokna' reported that a building on Palestine Street in Baqer Shahr collapsed, trapping three workers under the rubble, resulting in one worker's death and two others being rescued and taken to the hospital. Ehsan Sohrabi, a labor activist, stated on October 3 that 'accidents in production units have not decreased' and mentioned that 'the conditions for these accidents still exist.' He emphasized that only a 'small number' of workplace incidents are reported in the media, and many accidents 'do not even appear in official statistics.'