One gram of gold now equals a month’s wage for Iranian workers
An Iranian labor representative said soaring prices have eroded wages to the point where one gram of gold now equals a full month’s minimum pay for a worker.
An Iranian labor representative said soaring prices have eroded wages to the point where one gram of gold now equals a full month’s minimum pay for a worker.
“Today, one gram of gold is equal to a full month’s minimum wage for a worker,” said Habib Sadeghzadeh Tabrizi, an inspector with the country’s High Council of Islamic Labor Councils.
He added the collapse in real wages has reached a point where the traditional phrase “shrinking dinner table” no longer applies, adding that many workers effectively have no table left.
With gold trading at around 135.5 million rials per gram – roughly $104 at current exchange rates, and the dollar near 1.3 million rials, he said the gap between official wages and real living costs has become untenable.
He said runaway inflation has stripped Article 41 of Iran’s labor law – meant to link wages to inflation and living costs – of any practical meaning, adding that salaries now lose value even before they are paid.
Sadeghzadeh said wages for the current year were set when the dollar stood near 850,000 rials, but have since been overtaken by a sharp currency slide, leaving workers unable to plan even basic daily expenses.
“If this trend continues, it will not only destroy workers’ livelihoods but also undermine production and the wider economy,” he said, adding that fair tax exemptions and wage adjustments in line with real inflation are now a national necessity, not a sectoral demand.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said runaway increases in the cost of basic goods had become one of the public’s main concerns, with rising foreign exchange and gold prices acting as key drivers – or what he called pretexts – for broader inflation.
Speaking in an open parliamentary session, Ghalibaf said the legislature had held a series of oversight meetings with senior government officials, including the ministers of economy, agriculture and industry, as well as the heads of the planning and budget organization and the central bank.
He said the talks had focused on preventing further erosion of household purchasing power, implementing a state-backed food voucher scheme and managing volatility in the currency market.
“If these measures do not deliver results, then in order to minimize time and tension, the priority will be for the government to repair its cabinet,” Ghalibaf said. “If the necessary reforms are not carried out by the government, representatives will be forced to begin the impeachment process.”
The warning adds to a widening chorus of concern inside Iran’s political establishment as inflation, a weakening rial and sharp rises in food and housing costs strain living standards, particularly for lower-income households.
Ghalibaf said parliament would continue to pursue the issue with urgency, stressing that lawmakers viewed the surge in prices for everyday necessities as a national priority.
The pressure on the Pezeshkian administration has also extended beyond economic policy.
During the same parliamentary session, dozens of lawmakers issued formal written warnings to the president and cabinet ministers on a wide range of issues, from perceived inequality in the state bureaucracy to delays in infrastructure projects, internet access, student housing and unpaid wages.
Such parliamentary admonitions are a routine feature of Iranian politics, but their volume shows the breadth of dissatisfaction as economic hardship deepens.
Impeachment is not a theoretical threat. In March 2025, just six months after Pezeshkian took office, parliament voted to impeach and remove Economy Minister Abdolnasser Hemmati, citing the rising dollar rate and higher prices for basic goods.
During that session, Pezeshkian hinted at the limits of his authority, pointing indirectly to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s stance on relations with the United States and saying the government had to align itself with those positions.
Iran’s economic woes are rooted in years of sanctions, policy missteps and political constraints that have narrowed the government’s room for maneuver.
Inflation has remained high, the national currency has repeatedly hit record lows and the cost of essential goods has surged, eroding public confidence and adding to social tension.
The latest parliamentary threat comes as broader debates intensify over accountability and power in Iran’s political system. Moderates and reformist figures have increasingly argued that elected institutions lack the authority to address structural problems, while ultimate control over key areas of policy rests with unelected bodies under the Supreme Leader.
At the same time, even some of Pezeshkian’s former supporters have begun to question whether he can deliver meaningful change, with commentators and social media users warning that continued economic deterioration could trigger renewed unrest.
In a recent report, Donya-ye-Eghtesad said worsening sanctions have tightened what it described as Iran’s “economic bottlenecks,” accelerating capital concentration while pushing a growing share of households below the poverty line.
The paper pointed to the US Treasury Department’s decision on December 18 to sanction 29 oil tankers and the companies managing them, a move Washington said targeted Iran’s so-called shadow fleet used to bypass sanctions and export oil and petrochemical products.
The United States Department of the Treasury said the vessels and firms had transported hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian products using deceptive practices.
The measures, the daily warned, would sharply reduce Iran’s foreign currency revenues, compounding pressure on an economy already struggling with inflation, currency depreciation and declining purchasing power.
Rising prices signal widening poverty
The surge in free-market prices for foreign currency and gold, the newspaper said, reflects the spread of poverty, with inflation driven by these increases expected to place additional strain on Iranian households in the coming months.
In recent weeks, both markets have posted repeated record highs, fueling broader inflationary expectations.
Over the past year alone, average food prices in Iran have risen by more than 66 percent, according to figures cited in the report. The paper said inflationary pressures have intensified following renewed UN sanctions and repeated statements by Iranian officials insisting on continuing the country’s nuclear program.
Ali Heidari, an Iran-based economic researcher quoted by Donya-ye-Eghtesad, said inequality in Iran is far worse than the global average.
“About 29 percent of the country’s wealth is held by just one percent of the population,” he said.
Poverty, Heidari added, has expanded rapidly. Around 26 percent of Iranians lived below the poverty line in 2022, he said, rising to 36 percent in 2023 – more than 31 million people. “If data for 2025 become available, the number will almost certainly be higher,” he said.
Who loses, who gains
Retirees, workers and salaried employees, Heidari said, have borne the brunt of economic pressure, as workshops and small businesses cut jobs or reduce working hours under sanctions. By contrast, he said, hoarders and speculative actors have benefited.
He blamed Iran’s tax system for encouraging non-productive and underground economic activity, arguing that weak transparency and incentives for speculation have helped fuel wealth concentration.
Analysts have long warned that Iran’s efforts to evade sanctions have contributed to systemic corruption – a policy Tehran continues to frame as “resistance” against international pressure.
The city’s average air quality index (AQI) reached 116 on Friday, placing it in the “unhealthy for sensitive groups” category, Tehran’s Air Quality Control Company said. The figure marked a sharp deterioration from the previous 24-hour average of 83, which had indicated acceptable conditions.
Since the start of the current Iranian year in March, Tehran has recorded only six days of clean air. Official figures show the capital has experienced 130 days of acceptable air quality, 113 days classified as unhealthy for sensitive groups, 20 unhealthy days for the general population, two very unhealthy days and two days deemed hazardous.
The renewed pollution prompted health warnings urging people with heart and lung disease, children, pregnant women and the elderly to stay indoors and avoid unnecessary travel, IRNA, the state-run news agency, reported on Friday.
Chronic crisis in major cities
Air quality is measured on a scale in which AQI levels between zero and 50 indicate clean air, 51 to 100 acceptable conditions, 101 to 150 unhealthy for sensitive groups, 151 to 200 unhealthy for all, 201 to 300 very unhealthy and 301 to 500 hazardous.
Air pollution has become one of Iran’s most serious public health and environmental challenges in recent years. Major cities including Tehran, Isfahan, Mashhad and Ahvaz regularly experience prolonged periods of unhealthy air, particularly during colder months when temperature inversions trap pollutants close to the ground.
Public frustration has grown as pollution episodes intensify, with many citizens saying that simply breathing clean air has become a daily struggle. Environmental specialists have long warned that weak enforcement, aging vehicle fleets and reliance on highly polluting fuels have worsened the problem.
Critics say government policies, including the burning of heavy fuel oil at power plants during energy shortages, have played a direct role in exacerbating pollution, exposing millions of residents to serious health risks.
Khuzestan cities also affected
Air pollution also affected several cities in the southern province of Khuzestan on Friday. Data from the National Air Quality Monitoring Center showed AQI levels reaching 153 in Khorramshahr and 152 in Molasani, both classified as unhealthy for all population groups.
Other cities, including Abadan, Shushtar, Karun and Haftkel, recorded AQI levels between 108 and 136, placing them in the unhealthy-for-sensitive-groups range. Local media advised residents with underlying health conditions, as well as children and the elderly, to avoid strenuous outdoor activity.
The pollution wave comes as seasonal influenza cases rise across Iran, compounding respiratory health risks. In August, Abbas Shahsavani, deputy head of the Air Quality and Climate Change Research Center at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, said more than 35,000 deaths nationwide in the previous year were attributed to air pollution, underscoring the scale of a crisis that remains largely unresolved.
