For years, the Iranian regime has exploited cheap labor by using thousands of prisoners as a source of significant income. This issue has now caught the attention of United Nations reporters. In one of the latest reports on this matter, the regime was accused of running the most prominent form of modern slavery.
On August 28, the United Nations website published a written statement submitted by a non-governmental organization condemning the use of prisoners in Iran as labor, labeling it as the most prominent form of contemporary slavery. The statement examines the conditions under which Iranian regime officials rent out prisoners’ labor to private and public sectors.
Prisoners Subjected to Forced Labor
The report states that prisoners’ labor is attractive to exploiters due to its very low cost. Meanwhile, prison authorities seize at least three-quarters of the prisoners’ meager wages, presenting this situation as a clear example of human exploitation in the modern era.
The statement raises deep concerns about human rights violations and the use of prisoners as a tool for profiteering, calling for immediate action by the international community to address these conditions.
The report reads in part:
“In the same context, estimates indicate that Iranian authorities rent labor force from prisoners to private and government sectors because it is very cheap labor compared to its counterparts in both sectors.
“Those in charge of prison administration seize at least three-quarters of prisoners’ salaries, and prisoners are usually employed in prison workshops or transferred to places outside them, such as mines and quarries, where they work long hours without time to rest. Female prisoners are forced to work in sewing workshops, packing goods, cooking, and baking for very low wages – estimated at $2.9 per month for bakery workers in 2020, which is not enough to provide for their basic needs or help their families.
“Guards in Tehran Grand Prison and Fashafuyeh Prison threaten prisoners with torture to encourage them to increase their productivity.”
