The Start of October in Iran; School Bells Ring Amid a Shortage of Over 176,000 Teachers

With the beginning of October, the issue of teacher shortages in Iran and the lack of attention to teachers' demands has once again made headlines in the media. Iran is facing a shortage of over 176,000 teachers. The website 'Eghtesad24' reports that more than 85 percent of students in the country study in public schools. The failure to qualify candidates in the recruitment process for the Ministry of Education due to political reasons has exacerbated this issue. Factors such as having tattoos and inappropriate makeup, unconventional attire, lack of participation in religious ceremonies and Friday prayers, and absence from events like elections and government demonstrations, known as 'Code 19', are among the reasons for disqualification. Additionally, the suppression of teachers' union activists by the security forces of the Islamic Republic intensified after their protests peaked in 2021, resulting in the dismissal of several and mandatory retirement for others. The 'Eghtesad24' website also points out the low salaries of teachers in Iran, stating that the average salary is 16 million and 420 thousand tomans, which includes both newly hired individuals and those who have served for 30 years or more. The thirteenth government of the Islamic Republic claimed that it would increase the salaries of official teachers by implementing the 'Ranking Law', but the Coordinating Council of Teachers' Unions in Iran and other teachers' unions have criticized the implementation of this law, including the fact that some union activists are excluded from the ranking law. A spokesperson for the Coordinating Council of Teachers' Unions told the 'Emtidad' website that between 2022 and the end of 2023, at least 80 teachers have been deprived of ranking, including dismissed or bought-out teachers, those who have received suspension orders, and those who were forced into retirement. The indifference of Islamic Republic officials to the teacher shortage and the poor living conditions of teachers continues, while an education expert emphasized in an interview with the 'Jamaran' website that education in Iran is 'classist'. Adel Barkam said, 'The gentlemen who are political and decision-makers have their own private schools, and as long as this outlook and these individuals are present, the situation gets worse every year.' Following the worsening economic situation in Iran, protests and strikes among professional and labor groups have increased. After the protests by retired educators in September in front of the Planning and Budget Organization, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Education stated that the amount of retirement bonuses for 2023 is a 'very high number', estimating it at around 40 trillion tomans. According to reports, no amount has yet been paid to retirees. The economic protests are expanding among a wide range of people in Iran, including nurses, retirees, workers, teachers, investors, and healthcare workers, while the political deputy of the Revolutionary Guards has announced in its publication to the 'ministries related to the market and economy' that they 'must prepare for war' and get ready for 'economic warfare'. At the same time, the Islamic Republic's security and judicial actions against workers, retirees, teachers, and other wage earners in Iran have also intensified. In this context, several union activists in various regions of Iran have been summoned, threatened, or imprisoned. The continuation of economic protests in various regions of Iran, including the summons of Koukb Badaghi, a teacher from Izeh and a friend of Kian Pirfalak's mother, to the Revolutionary Court in Ahvaz, ongoing strikes and protests by workers, teachers, and retirees, and French unions calling for the release of imprisoned labor and union activists in Iran. Rasul Badaghi has been granted a week's leave, and the return of retired teachers to schools continues, while the problems of educators persist.