Retired Educators Protest in Several Cities in Iran: 'Do Not Fabricate Cases Against Teachers'

On Tuesday, August 1, retired educators held protests in several cities and provinces, including Sanandaj, Ardabil, Shiraz, Kermanshah, Yazd, and Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari. The retirees raised slogans demanding 'elimination of discrimination' and 'equalization of salaries'. Some protesting retirees announced that they would continue these gatherings until their demands are met. The Telegram channel of the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions published images and videos of these protests, mentioning demands such as 'freedom for teachers' and 'stopping the fabrication of cases against teachers'. Retirees from various sectors, including telecommunications and social security, have also held protests in several cities in recent days. According to ILNA news agency, telecommunications retirees protested on Monday, July 31, in Tehran, Kermanshah, Mashhad, Gilan, Fars, Isfahan, Ardabil, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Khuzestan, and Kermanshah in front of telecommunications offices. The protesters voiced grievances about the non-implementation of the 2009 employment regulations, non-payment of benefits, issues related to supplementary insurance, and increased insurance contributions for retirees. They emphasized that after the privatization of the Telecommunications Company of Iran in 2010, the private sector has failed to fulfill its commitments, including paying benefits such as salaries, pensions, and insurance for telecommunications employees. According to telecommunications retirees, the private sector has not adhered to the provisions of the 2009 regulations and has taken steps to undermine the rights of employees and retirees by invoking labor laws. A number of social security retirees also protested on Sunday, July 30, in Ahvaz, Shush, Kermanshah, and Rasht against their living conditions in front of the Social Security Organization. The protesters demanded an increase in pensions and higher salaries above the poverty line, access to free medical services, improved welfare services, and the restoration of the independence of the Social Security Organization. Simultaneously, a group of steel industry retirees gathered in front of the Steel Retirement Fund, raising demands such as 'implementation of equalization and salary increases and receiving overdue claims'. Some oil and gas workers from Gachsaran and certain nurses from Khomeini Hospital in Tehran also protested over wages and working conditions. The continuous rise in living costs in Iran has caused a large segment of the population to fall below the poverty line. Sattar Rahmani, a labor and teachers' rights activist, previously described the issue of workers' livelihoods in Iran as a 'struggle for life and death'. The slogans of retired workers from Shush, Karkheh, and Haft Tappeh included 'Enough of oppression and injustice, our table is empty'. The protests of nurses and retirees continue in several cities in Iran: 'They have plundered the country'. The newspaper 'Payam-e Ma' reported that teachers in border areas are migrating. Two labor unions protested against the prison sentence of Reyhaneh Ansari-Nejad: 'It is a case fabrication'. A worker from the Chavar petrochemical plant in Ilam committed suicide after being dismissed.