Today, Sunday, August 3, at least 12 major events of workers’ and pensioners’ protests, workplace disasters, and social crises were recorded across Iran.
Each of these incidents reflects a structural reality: the ruling order, through economic pressure and the collapse of welfare systems, is pushing workers and wage-earners to the brink of ruin.
Nationwide Protests by Pensioners
Social Security and Steel pensioners staged gatherings in several cities—from Tehran, Rasht, and Ahvaz to Isfahan.
Their demands are clear:
- Higher pensions
- Full implementation of the equalization plan
- Free healthcare
- Removal of the wage ceiling
- Ending corruption in the pension funds
In Isfahan, steel pensioners rallied in front of the Pension Fund and Steel Association offices on Neshat Street. In Tehran, Social Security pensioners demanded the enforcement of the October 2023 equalization law. And in Ahvaz, Khuzestan pensioners raised their voices with the chant: “Water, electricity, life—our fundamental right.”
Sanandaj Municipal Workers: Five Months Without Pay, One Self-Immolation Attempt, and No Answer
Municipal workers in Sanandaj gathered today to protest unpaid wages. The municipality employs over 1,000 workers whose salaries are between two and five months overdue.
Last Wednesday, one worker attempted self-immolation but was saved by colleagues.
While city officials claim the delays are “not severe,” workers openly declared today that they have not been paid for five months.
Until workers are independently and collectively organized, this vicious cycle of deceit and silence will continue.
Official Oil Workers Rally in Ahvaz
At the five-story headquarters of the National Iranian South Oil Company, permanent oil workers voiced three clear demands:
- Removal of the deduction clause tied to the wage ceiling
- Raising the wage floor
- Removing the cap on retirement bonuses and fully counting service beyond 30 years
The oil industry—source of the country’s revenue—is now facing widespread dissatisfaction among its permanent workforce, laying bare the exploitative nature of the system.
Tehran | Supervising Engineers Protest the Transfer of Oversight to Contractors
In a complete step backward for urban oversight, Tehran’s municipality has decided to let builders themselves select supervising engineers.
Today, supervising engineers rallied in front of the City Council, calling the decision a threat to public safety, engineering transparency, and citizens’ rights.
Death, Fire, and Instability in Workplaces
Several incidents tied to safety and welfare conditions were reported today:
- Asaluyeh | Food poisoning among Kavian Petrochemical subcontractors; several hospitalized
- Poldokhtar | Fire at the Oxin Refining Plant; temporary shutdown, 15 workers left in limbo
- Tehran | An app-based taxi driver died of heatstroke on the road to Imam Khomeini Airport; emergency services arrived late
- Azarshahr | Major fire at a chemical factory; smoke visible for kilometers
In all these cases, the absence of oversight, profit-driven subcontracting, and the lack of independent organization play a central role.
Suicide in Rask | The Silent Cost of Job Insecurity
Yesterday, Khadijeh Dehqani, a contracted employee at Iranshahr University of Medical Sciences, ended her life in Rask following dismissal, financial hardship, and job uncertainty.
She had been seeking reinstatement for months, but official neglect and bureaucratic pressure pushed her to the point of collapse.
When there is no support system, suicide becomes the only foreseeable outcome.
Position and Outlook
From today’s protests, one common message rings clear: accumulated demands can no longer be contained by promises and denial.
The way forward lies not in government pledges or state-controlled unions, but in independent, nationwide, and radical organization of workers and wage-earners against this decayed and unjust system.
Today’s protests are a rehearsal of collective power. They must continue, connect, and be organized.
Prepared by “Pezhvak-e Kar-e Iran” (Echo of Labor in Iran)
