Teachers Gather in Hamadan Protesting ‘Incomplete Approval’ of Ranking Bill
Teachers in the city of Hamadan held a protest rally on Thursday, December 16, in opposition to the ‘incomplete approval’ of the teacher ranking bill in the Iranian parliament.
Based on videos published on social media, hundreds of teachers in Hamadan chanted slogans including “Teachers rise up, to eliminate discrimination.”
At this rally, teachers also expressed their opposition to the recent parliamentary resolution through banners and called for the release of imprisoned teachers.
According to a report from the Coordinating Council of Iran’s Cultural Workers’ Professional Unions, the director general of education in Hamadan province was also present at this gathering.
Two days after one of the largest teacher protest gatherings in over 80 cities on Monday, December 13, Iranian parliament representatives approved article six of the teacher ranking bill on Wednesday, specifying the amount of salary and benefit increases for teachers.
The approval of this bill came after approximately ten years of its pending status in parliament, during which time teachers had consistently called for its passage through protest rallies.
Many teachers, including Mohammad Habibi, spokesman for the Teachers’ Professional Union, responded by calling the bill passed in parliament a “patchwork,” not a ranking plan.
Teachers held widespread protests in dozens of cities on December 12 and 13 in opposition to the non-implementation of the “ranking plan” and the “wage equalization law,” with the gathering of teachers in front of parliament in Tehran facing attacks by security forces and the arrest of some teachers.
The escalation of nationwide protests by educators and the approval of article six of the teacher ranking bill occurred while the Islamic Republic of Iran is grappling with numerous economic problems, including due to economic sanctions resulting from nuclear activities.
According to a report from Iran’s Statistical Center, the annual inflation rate in November was 44.4 percent, and based on official statistics from the Ministry of Labor, the average price of over 83 percent of food items in Iran has exceeded the crisis threshold.
Source: Radio Farda
