Workers of Lowshan Municipality; 5 months arrears of wages and their deprivation of access to masks and disinfectants

Human Rights in Iran – Saturday, April 18th 2020, Workers of Lowshan Municipality, located in the central part of Rudbar city of Gilan province, despite the fact that 1 month is passed since the beginning of New Year (in Iran), however they have not received their unpaid wages of the last 5 months of the last year. These workers also reported that the insurance premiums related to the first month of New Year, is not granted to their social security accounts. Recently, th mayor of Lowsh Municipality, along with some other managers, were suspended due to embezzlement and financial violations.

According to Human Rights in Iran, quoted from ILNA, the workers working in street sweeping section of Lowshan Municipality have not received their 3-month wage arrears from November 2019 to the end of March 2020 (the last 5 months ending in the beginning of New Year). Also these citizens said that their insurance premiums was not deposited in their accounts of Social Security Organization. When these citizens refer to the officials in order to peruse the receipt of their wages, they are not answered for their requires, and they are in a pending situation. Regarding the Covid-19 outbreak z however these citizens are denied access to masks, sanitary gloves and disinfectants.

Regarding the situation of Lowshan Municipality and its workers, one of the workers of this Municipality said: “Since the beginning of October (2019), Lowshan Municipality is managed by the overseer. In September (2019), the mayor and three members of the city council were fired because of financial misconduct. The last salary we received was related to October (2019), which along with the New Year bonus was transferred to workers accounts in March. The salary and insurance premiums of 18 colleagues who were retired from 10 up to 2 years ago, with the passage of hard and harmful occupations and their years of services are not yet been fully paid. Even a part of their wage was not paid at the time of their employment.”

” We feel ashamed to go home, because our pockets are empty and we are embarrassed near our families. In the early days of the year, our concern was to see our children happy during Nowrouz, but for now, we are only obsessing over feeding them ” the protesting worker said.

This worker at the garbage collecting section of Lowshan Municipality, said about the situation and the facilities provided for them to avoid corona virus: ” We the garbage collectors and our colleagues working in the green space sector z are active in these high-risk days, that all are emphasizing on the importance of personal hygiene. We are working without masks z gloves and any other protection in different parts of the city, and even at the present conditions that the situation of the first month salary of the year (April) is unknown, with several months of our arrears wages, we are not able to afford buying masks, gloves or other detergents and disinfectants.”

The poverty and deprivation of the workers’ social security are on the rise, while in Article 25 of Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Iran is a signatory to this International recognized document, it emphasizes on the right of individuals to appropriate social security in the terms of food z housing, clothing and social providing facilities in the time of unemployment, illness, deformity and handicap, widowhood, oldness or any other situation in which the persons are incapable to earn and lead a respectable life.