The protest of hundreds of workers of Iran National Steel Industries in Ahvaz, Khuzestan continued on February 28th for its eighteenth day in front of the governor’s office. They are protesting non-payment of their salary and benefits for five months as well as the uncertain future of their job and factory situation. The workers held banners reading: “We, the workers of National Group, have not been paid for the past few months ” and “We, the workers of National Group, are standing until the end.” During Rouhani’s visit to Khouzestan, they also gathered Ahvaz airport and protested him by chanting “Rouhani, where are your promises?”
National Steel Industries Group of Ahvaz, with 18 production lines and 4,000 employees, was one of the largest manufacturing factories in the country that was sold to a regime’s faction in 2009 under the guise of privatization. During a power struggle within the regime and exposing an embezzlement of 3,000 billion tomans, the regime’s judiciary took it over. Despite the factory’s active production lines and the sale of 400 million tomans of its property, the regime leaders do not pay salaries and benefits of employees.
On February 27, the Khuzestan Haft Tapeh Sugar Cane workers continued their protest in front of the factory against non-payment of their salaries and benefits.
At the same time workers of Ney Bar of the same complex held a protest gathering in the camp area due to lack of insurance claims arrears. Also, about 80 tractor and trailer drivers of Ney Kesh went on strike for several hours against non-payment of their claims in recent months. This government complex has refused to pay salaries of 250 retired workers in recent months.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
March 1, 2017