Iranian Labor Law - Labor Law

Labor Law

See also: Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs

There is a minimum national wage applicable to each sector of activity fixed by the Supreme Labor Council which is revised annually. In 2010 the minimum wage, determined by the Supreme Labor Council, was about US$303 per month (US$3,636 per year). Membership in the social security system for all employees is compulsory. The national poverty line for Tehran in the year ending March 20, 2008 was $9,612 per year and the national average was $4,932.

Although Iranian workers have, in theory, a right to form labor unions, there is, in actuality, no union system in the country. Workers are represented ostensibly by the Workers' House, a state-sponsored institution that nevertheless attempts to challenge some state policies. Guild unions operate locally in most areas but are limited largely to issuing credentials and licenses. The right of workers to strike is generally not respected by the state, and since 1979 strikes have often been met by police action.

The comprehensive Labor Law covers all labor relations in Iran, including hiring of local and foreign staff. The Labor Law provides a very broad and inclusive definition of the individuals it covers, and written, oral, temporary and indefinite employment contracts are all recognized.

The Iranian Labor Law is very employee-friendly and makes it extremely difficult to layoff staff. Employing personnel on consecutive six-month contracts is illegal, as is dismissing staff without proof of a serious offense. Labor disputes are settled by a special labor council, which usually rules in favor of the employee.

The Labor Law provides the minimum standards an employer must adhere to when forming an employment relationship. The minimum age for workers in Iran is 15 years, but large sectors of the economy (including small businesses, agricultural concerns, and family-owned enterprises) are exempted.

Read more about this topic:  Iranian Labor Law

Famous quotes containing the words labor and/or law:

    “... continual hard labor deadens the energies of the soul, and benumbs the faculties of the mind; the ideas become confined, the mind barren, and, like the scorching sands of Arabia, produces nothing; or, like the uncultivated soil, brings forth thorns and thistles. Again, continual hard labor irritates our tempers and sours our dispositions; the whole system become worn out with toil and fatigue; nature herself becomes almost exhausted, and we care but little whether we live or die.”
    —Maria Stewart (1803–1879)

    “In a democracy—even if it is a so-called democracy like our white-élitist one—the greatest veneration one can show the rule of law is to keep a watch on it, and to reserve the right to judge unjust laws and the subversion of the function of the law by the power of the state. That vigilance is the most important proof of respect for the law.”
    —Nadine Gordimer (b. 1923)