Retired Protesters in Iranian Cities Take to the Streets Again: The Government's Work Results in Plundering the People's Pockets

A group of retirees from the Social Security Organization and the steel industry gathered on Sunday, June 17, to protest their living conditions and the lack of attention to their demands in at least four cities in Iran. According to reports received by Voice of America and published on social media, the protests took place in the cities of Kermanshah, Ahvaz, Isfahan, and Shush on the 27th of Khordad. Retired protesters in Kermanshah held placards reading 'Livelihood and healthcare, worse than ever' to express their dissatisfaction with their welfare and health status, and ahead of the upcoming elections to determine the president of the Islamic Republic to succeed Ebrahim Raisi from among the candidates considered by the Guardian Council, they chanted: 'The government's work results in plundering the people's pockets.' In Ahvaz, retirees from the Social Security Organization emphasized the necessity of unity between workers and retirees in protesting their living conditions, chanting that 'inflation and high prices are a plague on the people' and considered street protests as the only way to reclaim their rights. In Shush, another city in Khuzestan province, retired protesters stressed the need for the implementation of the equalization of salaries plan, protesting against the imposition of personal and social restrictions on women by the Islamic Republic authorities, chanting: 'Let go of the hijab, think about us.' Simultaneously, steel industry retirees also protested in Isfahan, chanting: 'We have seen no justice, only heard lies.' The continuation of economic protests in Iran comes as news sources report that the Islamic Republic government has not only failed to control inflation but has also broken an 80-year record, with inflation rates exceeding 52%. According to a decree from the Supreme Labor Council, the minimum wage for married workers with children has increased by about two million tomans, reaching approximately 11 million tomans this year. However, this wage is not paid to workers who are not covered by labor law. In recent days, economist Reza Ghorashi emphasized in an interview with Voice of America that the economic problems in Iran are numerous and that for change to occur, not only the economy but also politics in Iran must undergo fundamental changes, stating that a core issue in Iran's economy under the Islamic Republic is the existence of rent-seeking.