Iran Economy NewsIran’s economy continues to struggle

Iran’s economy continues to struggle

-

Iran Focus

Tehran, 23 Apr – Iran’s economy is set to receive a boost as economic sanctions are lifted. Following the agreement with the P5+1 billions of dollars are set to circulate through Iran in the coming months. But decades of sanctions and crony-capitalism have left the Iranian labour market in poor shape.

A state broadcast in March 2016 showed workers protesting and venting their frustration at a reporter trying to interview them. The workers had not been paid there dismally low wages for months and were angry at how Article 44 of the constitution was being ignored.

Article 44 sets out the economic system of Iran based on public, co-operative and private sectors. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other government institutions own almost 80% of the industry and services in Iran. The proportion of capital redistributed to the workforce is between 5.5% and 10% in a lot of cases.

Privatisation, which is set to increase now the West is involved, results in asset stripping. Profitable niches are sold off and factories are closed. The Panama Papers leak revealed that then US-blacklisted Iranian oil company Petrocom, Petropars and the Oil Industry Investment Company (OIIC) had dealings with Mossack Fonseca. Employers take home the vast majority of profits paying their employees one of the lowest hourly rates in the world.

Figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) show Iran’s hourly wage at $1.91. That’s five times less than the wage in Australia ($9.54). The minimum wage in Iran is 8.1 million rials, equivalent to $286 or £190, per month. The Iranian minimum wage is set by the Central Bank of Iran using the rate of inflation as a guide.

Last year wage growth was 14% and inflation 12%. Fatollah Bayat of the Contract Workers Labour Union argued that the calculations used “were not tangible” to the lives of workers. A basket of 330 goods is used by the Statistical Centre, yet Bayat said that workers would not be able to buy “more than 250” of the goods in [their] whole lifetime”, according to a report on the NCRI website.

Gholamreza Abbasi, the Secretary-General of the Supreme Labour Council said on state television that in Iran “80% of workers live under the poverty line”. Article 41 of the labour law is supposed to guarantee the minimum wage to all workers and it must be sufficient to support a family of four.

 

Latest news

 Statistics show that New Year accidents’ deaths in Iran reached 585

Ahmad Shirani, the head of the Information and Traffic Control Center of the Iranian regime’s police, announced that the...

Land Subsidence in Critical Conditions in Isfahan

Mehdi Toghyani, a member of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament), pointed to the occurrence of land subsidence in various...

Iran’s Actual Inflation Rate Higher Than Official Stats

The state-run Donya-e-eqtesad newspaper, in a report analyzing the "general sentiment" regarding inflation in 2023, has stated that households...

Iranian Workers’ Monthly $136 Wages Can’t Cover $500 Expenses

The lives of a significant portion of the Iranian population are marked by uncertainty, largely because the Iranian economy...

Iranian Nurses Earn Twice Their Wages in Ride-Hailing Services

Reza Aryanpour, a member of the regime’s Majlis (parliament) Health and Treatment Commission, highlighted the growing trend of nurses...

Iran: Unprecedented Record of 152 Million Liters of Gasoline Consumption Per Day

On March 19, Iran set a new historical record in gasoline consumption with 152 million liters consumed in one...

Must read

Clinton doubts Iran will respond to overtures

Reuters: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is "doubtful"...

Iranian Weapons Seizure Highlights the Seriousness of the Iranian Regime’s Terror Threats

The United States Department of Justice revealed on Tuesday...

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you