Labor activist says protest is only path left for Iran’s retirees

Iranian labor activist Ali Nejati said protest was “the only path left” for Social Security retirees as pensions and wages fall further behind rising living costs, the welfare website Qalamro Refah reported.

Nejati, a retired Haft Tappeh Sugarcane worker, said not only retirees but also workers, teachers and employees were facing severe pressure under Iran’s current economic conditions.

He described prices, medical costs and housing expenses as “disastrous,” saying wages had been overwhelmed by inflation.

Nejati said the minimum monthly wage for workers covered by Iran’s labor law, around 166 million rials, about $92, rising to about 230 million rials, about $128, with benefits, remained “below the poverty line.”

He said Social Security retirees had protested in recent years but officials “do not hear the voices of workers and retirees.”

Nejati said the Social Security fund was facing shortages because companies had shut down, contributions had fallen and the government had not paid its debts to the fund.

“The only path left for retirees is protest,” he said.

He added that officials were telling retirees not to protest because the country was in wartime and crisis conditions, but warned that if talks with Social Security officials produced no result, retirees would again take their demands to the streets “as they did in previous years.”