Members of the Iranian regime’s Supreme Labor Council have reported from wage determination meetings that housing accounts for more than 70% of workers’ expenses. This has led labor and employer groups to pursue the issue of building housing for workers in collaboration with the government. However, many labor activists view this with skepticism, believing it to be an excuse for the government and employers to avoid raising wages in line with inflation and workers’ basic needs.
In this context, Mohammad Reza Tajik, a member of the Wage Committee of the Supreme Labor Council, told the state-run Tasnim news agency that one of the issues discussed was providing low-interest loans to workers. Another proposal was to rezone some land around industrial towns so employers could provide housing for workers.
According to this labor activist, workers may not be able to build housing with their limited savings and capital, but if cheap or free land is provided to them, they could become homeowners through partnerships with builders.
Critics argue that raising issues such as housing provision is a diversion tactic, as it is a time-consuming process that allows the government to avoid addressing the immediate financial needs of worker households. Media outlets have also reported on the dire conditions of workers. The Tabnak website wrote: “The rapid rise in the prices of essential goods and repeated price increases have significantly reduced workers’ purchasing power. Although wages were supposed to match inflation, the pace of inflation is so fast that it fails to offset workers’ expenses.”
This media outlet highlighted the gap, noting that the maximum income of a married worker is less than 150 million rials (approximately $178). In comparison, according to Faramarz Tofighi, a former member of the Supreme Labor Council, the minimum cost of living for a household in metropolitan areas in September 2024 was 320 million rials (approximately $380) and 283 million rials (approximately $356) in smaller cities.
Wages of Iranian workers cover only 30% of household expenses
In this regard, the inspector of the Supreme Assembly of Workers’ Representatives announced that the cost of the livelihood basket for a 3.3-member worker’s family has reached 400 million rials (approximately $475), while the average wage of workers is only 150 million rials, covering merely 30% of household expenses. According to the state-run Tasnim news agency, Hamidreza Emamqoli Tabar, the inspector of the Supreme Assembly of Workers’ Representatives, stated, “About 9% of workers in some provinces receive wages below the labor law, between 70 to 80 million rials (approximately $83 to $95).”
Meanwhile, critics believe that instead of supporting wage adjustments and improving workers’ living standards, the Iranian regime is looking for a formula to suppress wages. These individuals refer to recent comments by Ahmad Meidari, Iran’s Minister of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, who stated, “It is not correct for us to determine the minimum wage based on the minimum cost of living and inflation. This figure should be set according to the level of work hardship in various industries.”
The issues raised and the government’s and employers’ approach to determining workers’ wages come as, in October of this year, the state-run ILNA news agency reported an increase in the cost of the household livelihood basket to 367.8 million rials (approximately $437) and wrote, “Wages do not even cover one-third of living expenses.”
