Iran experienced a new day of demonstrations by teachers on Thursday – after that of December – protesting against their low salaries and the deterioration of the economic situation. More than one million people work in the education sector, half of them teachers.
With our correspondent in Tehran, Siavosh Ghazi
Protesters took place in many cities across the country, including Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Shiraz and Tabriz.
Teachers are asking for an increase in their salaries as inflation has approached 50% over the past twelve months and the rise in the price of everyday consumer goods is even greater.
” We’ve had enough of empty promises, our plates are empty chanted the demonstrators who also demanded the release of their arrested colleagues.
Parliament passed a law to increase and unify salaries, but this law, considered insufficient, has not yet entered into force.
Strikes have affected other sectors in recent weeks. A few days ago, justice employees went on strike for two days to demand a salary increase.
The almost daily increase in the prices of many products has had the effect of impoverishing the middle classes.
These demonstrations come as parliament has begun examining the new budget in which the government wants to remove part of the subsidies to pay direct aid to the poorest and increase taxes on the richest.