Iranian Official Admits Country Among World's Lowest Wages

Hamid Reza Imam Gholi-Tabar, the inspector of the Supreme Assembly of Workers' Representatives, has admitted the country is among the world's worst for wages.

“Among the countries with the lowest wages for laborers in the world, Iran ranks only second to Venezuela,” Gholi-Tabar stated in a Monday interview with the state-run Tasnim news agency.

It is difficult to find the labor needed to fill the shortage of factories and manufacturing units due to low wages, the official said. He blamed the government for failing to fulfill its “inherent responsibilities” to support the “vulnerable members of society”.

Iran's raging inflation and stagnant economy have caused the minimum wage to fall so far behind that tens of millions have become "working poor."

In October, Etemad, an Iranian reformist newspaper, published an article highlighting the alarming growth of poverty among workers whose incomes have fallen below the poverty line. Reports in the paper indicate that workers' wages now only cover approximately 60 percent of their household expenses each month.

In accordance with Article 41 of the Labor Law, the Supreme Labor Council is responsible for determining the minimum wage for workers each year. Despite this, the government is not obligated to set wages per the figures published by the council. Based on its own interests, it increases wages. In recent years, the discrepancy has resulted in widespread labor protests.

A minimum wage increase, however, raises the overall cost for businesses, leading to layoffs or a reluctance to hire new employees.