Labor Protest on the New Draft Proposals to the Labor Law

On November 20, 3000 workers staged a sit-in by the gates of the Iranian parliament to protest the proposed new changes to the labor law. The demonstration called by the “Labor House” was used by a large number of labor protesters to show their discontent with the proposed changes to the law set to be finalized on November 21 between the “management and labor representatives”. The “final draft” is to be heading to the parliament next.

The proposed changes opposed by independent workers organizations as well as those sanctioned by the government are to endorse rampant temporary contracts which according to Fathollah Bayat, head of the Union of Temporary and Contracting Workers, accounts for 80 to 85 percent of the workforce in the country; increase the power of the state and employer organizations to the detriment of workers organizations and unions; not mention the workers rights to independent organizations and unions; remove the special privilege for workers demands as written to the current labor law; relegate firing workers to disciplinary committees removing all the workers recourse to higher authorities making permanent employees on par with the temporary ones on this issue; relegate workers seniority payments to retirement; delegate the High Council on Labor to decide the workers yearly bonuses, a council the composition of which has been strengthened more towards the state and employers to the detriment of the workers representation; and the minimum wages are to be determined by the labor ministry without participation of labor unions.

The proposed changes remove the universality of coverage of all factories and workshops by this law and by endorsing two tier wages system sanction the rampant practice of temporary contracts into the law. Furthermore, they remove the obligation of new owners to abide by previous owners assurances and agreements. The work week set as 44 hours currently are to be flexibly reduced on some days and increased on others. The proposed changes also do not recognize strikes, sit-ins, and demonstrations as the legal rights of the workers.

The workers protest lasted for two hours under heavy rain pour with workers chanting “changes to the labor law, devastating labor force”, and “strike, strike”.