According to Khabar Online, the debate over wage increases and compensating workers’ wage backlog continues in a situation where, on the one hand, the cost of living has increased rapidly, and on the other hand, the statements of some government officials about the inflationary consequences of salary increases have once again returned the issue of the relationship between wages and inflation to the center of economic disputes. In such a situation, in addition to facing a decrease in purchasing power, workers are also facing another issue: the non-implementation of legal approvals and the absence of effective mechanisms to pursue their demands.
Dariush Heydari, a labor activist and labor expert, believes that instead of answering about the policies that have led to the increase in inflation, the government is trying to introduce the increase in wages as the cause of inflation. At the same time, he criticizes the performance of the parliament, the structure of the Supreme Labor Council and the state of labor organizations and says that when workers have no independent organization and no job security, even the pursuit of their legal rights faces serious obstacles.
Criticizing the first vice president’s recent statements about the inflationary nature of wage increases, this labor expert believes that attributing inflation to workers’ rights is ignoring the main factors of price jumps and the government’s economic policies. He also points to the non-implementation of the wage resolution of the Supreme Labor Council and criticizes the parliament’s inaction in monitoring the government’s performance and says that in a situation where there are no independent labor organizations and job security has been weakened, the workers practically do not have effective tools to pursue their demands.
In an interview with Khabar Online, referring to the statements of the first vice president about the effect of a 60% increase in wages on the inflation of 30 to 60%, Heydari said: It is not clear on what basis this estimate was made. We did not expect Mr. Aref to make such statements in a situation where the workers are facing heavy inflation and are waiting for the implementation of the wage decree and wage restoration. We hope that the calculation basis of this claim will be announced; Because the evidence shows that the wage increase alone does not have such an effect on inflation.
Emphasizing that economic policies and government decisions play a more decisive role in increasing prices, he added: The Minister of Labor promised earlier that the government will control inflation, and if not, it will increase wages in the second half of the year. Now six months have passed and inflation has increased dramatically. If the worker’s wages go up, inflation does not necessarily increase; Inflation is a product of other factors including economic decisions and policies.
Referring to the limited share of wages in the finished price of goods, this labor activist clarified: the increase in wages is to compensate the living expenses of workers; Costs that have increased due to inflation. One should ask what factors have caused inflation? An important part of the currency market is under the control of the government, and economic decisions are made in institutions such as the Ministry of Economy, the Central Bank, and the Planning and Budget Organization. Therefore, whenever policymakers fail to control inflation, the responsibility cannot be placed on workers, employees, and retirees.
Heydari continued: This year’s salary was determined based on last year’s inflation, and in fact, it was part of the compensation for the increase in the previous year’s expenses. If the government guarantees that inflation will remain at the same level without raising wages, workers can also discuss it; But there is no such guarantee and the government is responsible for compensating the purchasing power of the labor force against the increase in living costs.
Instead of commenting, the parliament should hold the government accountable for the implementation of the law
In another part of his speech, this expert in the field of labor criticized the performance of parliamentarians on the issue of workers’ wages and said: People expect parliamentarians not to be mere spokespersons for public demands, but to hold the government accountable for the implementation of laws. The fact that the representatives talk about the necessity of salary increase alone will not solve the problem. They should investigate why the government is not following the law and why wages are not increasing in line with economic conditions.
Stating that the workers have practically faced uncertainty in the matter of law enforcement, he added: Today we do not know where to go to follow up on the non-compliance of the law enforcers with the law. The Minister of Labor is obliged to implement the resolution of the Supreme Labor Council; A resolution that he himself has signed. The government is the enforcer of the law, and if the minister refuses to implement it, the parliament must pursue the issue through its monitoring tools.
Referring to the possibility of the Court of Administrative Justice entering this issue, Heydari stated: After the follow-up by the Parliament, the Court of Administrative Justice can also enter. Of course, the experience of the past few decades has shown that labor complaints in this court have not reached the desired result. Labor representatives have repeatedly protested against the wage approvals and even demanded their cancellation, but these complaints have practically not reached results. Even in cases where the labor representatives objected to the wage approvals and did not sign them, this opposition did not prevent the implementation of the decisions.
He emphasized: The worker cannot turn the wheel of the economy and seek to implement the laws himself. As a legislative body, the parliament is also responsible for monitoring the implementation of the law. The social commission, the labor faction, and the presidency of the parliament have the necessary tools to follow up on this issue and should use these capacities.
Labor organizations do not have independence; The demands of the workers have remained on the ground
This labor activist went on to consider the lack of independent organizations as one of the most important obstacles to pursuing the demands of the labor community and said: “Today’s workers do not have an independent organization, and the groups that operate under the title of labor organization do not have enough independence and efficiency.” An organization can be considered truly independent when the employer does not play a role in it; But in many companies, we see that the people who are introduced as workers’ representatives are the managers of the same group.
Heydari added: It is natural in such a situation that these organizations cannot be expected to follow up on the real demands of the workers. The Ministry of Labor should have monitored the status of organizations through its inspectors and prevented the presence and influence of employers and their representatives in the structure of labor organizations; But no effective action has been taken in this regard. The result of this situation is that today there is no institution with minimal power and influence to follow up on the demands of the multi-million working community of Iran.
Emphasizing the direct relationship between job security and the power of workers to organize, he said: both job security is weakened and we do not have an independent labor organization. When these two tools are taken from the workforce, naturally, there is not enough power to pursue demands, even through legal and structural paths.
In the end, this labor expert pointed out again by criticizing the performance of parliament representatives: In such a situation, the only way left for the workers is to go to the parliament; But except for a few representatives who talk about the necessity of salary increase and give interviews, no effective action is seen. It is not an acceptable situation that both the workers want the implementation of the law and an increase in wages, but they do not have an organization to follow up on their demands, and that the parliament, despite having legal tools, does not perform its supervisory duty properly. The parliament should be more active in monitoring the good implementation of laws.
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