Irán, República Islámica del - Seven hundred workers fired for union activity at oil and petrochemical company

Seven hundred workers at a Tehran oil refinery were fired on 22 June 2021 for participating in workplace strikes. The workers were fired as part of a sweeping strike action occurring across Iran, with an estimated 20,000 oil and petrochemical workers on strike across 11 provinces. Many workers from various industrial centres have joined the “1400 Campaign”, demanding higher wages, an increase in leave and holidays by ten days, and better health and safety conditions (especially in the context of the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic). These are longstanding demands that have been ignored by management and the Iranian regime’s authorities. Workers from many centres – including the Mahshahr port of the Southern Oil Company; Assaluyeh; the Damavand petrochemical project; Kayhan Pars in Esfahan; and Esfahan oil refinery – and contract workers at the Abadan refinery and workers at the Adish refinery have joined the campaign. Workers at the Kangan Phase 13 power plant also walked off the job. The Council for Organising Protests of Oil Contract Workers is coordinating these strikes and protests.