Continued Professional Protests in Iran; Khuzestan Retirees Demand Full Implementation of Wage Equalization
Rallies by workers and retirees protesting economic hardship and disregard for professional rights continued in Khuzestan, Gilan, Isfahan, and Tehran provinces over Sunday and Monday.
A group of retired employees from the Social Security Organization in Ahvaz held a protest gathering on Monday, December 13, in front of the organization’s office at Labor Square.
Based on the slogans chanted by protesters at this gathering, their protest was directed against poor living conditions, incomplete implementation of the retiree wage equalization plan, lack of free healthcare, and unfulfilled promises by officials.
“Free healthcare is our rightful demand,” “Neither parliament nor government cares about the people,” “You made all these promises but didn’t deliver our rights,” “Implement wage equalization without trickery,” and “Where was wage equalization? It was a lie and pretense!” were among the slogans chanted by protesting retirees at this gathering.
On Sunday, retirees also took to the streets in Rasht and Isfahan, and postal company employees in Tehran held protest gatherings.
At the gathering of Social Security Organization retirees in Golsar, Rasht, protesters chanted “Esmail Karami, he must be freed.”
Iran Labor News Agency reported on the retirees’ protest in Rasht, noting that they “demanded increasing pensions to match the poverty line, providing free healthcare services, settling the government’s debts to the Social Security Organization, and increasing welfare facilities and services.”
In this report, a protester’s statement was cited saying: “Given the current inflation and the possibility of it increasing in the coming months, we retirees demand that our pensions be increased to match the actual cost of living. Our wages must be increased in such a way that we don’t face another economic collapse next year.”
This protester told ILNA: “The Social Security Organization must fulfill its commitments to the insured, including providing completely free healthcare services.”
Retirees from the steel industry in Isfahan voiced their protest with slogans such as “Government of justice, yet so much injustice” and “A steel worker dies but will not accept humiliation.”
A group of postal company employees also gathered on Sunday in front of the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology building in Tehran, protesting economic and professional hardships.
At this gathering, protesters chanted slogans including “A decent life is our right” and “Fair wages are our right.”
