Interim Report - Report No 230, November 1983

Case No 1187 (Iran (Islamic Republic of)) - Complaint date: 16-MAR-83 - Closed

1. 660. By a communication dated 16 March 1983, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) presented a complaint of violations of trade union rights in Iran. The Government replied in a communication dated 30 May 1983.
2. 661. Iran has not ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), or the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. The complainant's allegations

1. 662. The ICFTU alleges mass arrests and dismissals of workers in the car factories of Pars/General Motors, Khavar/Mercedes Benz, Zannyad/Japanese cars, Khodrosazan, Volvo, Zaipa, Kaveh lorries and other factories as a result of protests and strikes over a Government circular increasing working hours to 44 per week and declaring Thursday - formerly a day off - as a normal working day.
2. 663. The complainant cites the specific example of the Pars Factory where l,700 workers held a strike and demonstration on 22 April 1982 also over the issue of the regime's organs of suppression in factories called "Islamic Societies". According to the complainant, five units from the Prosecutor's Office accompanied by armed guards arrived at the site and, while continuously firing into the air, they wounded, beat and arrested the workers. Also arrested were the factory's production manager and the heads of the administrative, laboratory and inspection units. According to the complainant, arrests continued over the next few days and some of the workers are held in Tehran's Evin Prison, while others are in the Prosecutor's Office section of the Ministry of Labour. The complainant supplies a list of the names of 44 arrested workers (see Annex).
3. 664. The second example cited by the complainant is the strikes in the Telecommunications Office which began on 12 May 1982, starting in one area office and soon spreading to all regions. According to the complainant, on 16 May armed guards raided the offices and arrested a large number of staff who were then sent to Evin Prison.
4. 665. Finally the complainant alleges that the Government dissolved on 28 July 1982, the following seven trade unions of the Greater Teheran Region. Union of Construction Workers, Union of Structural, Central Heating and Air Conditioning Workers, Union of Carpenters, Frame-makers, Wire Drawers and Concrete Workers, Union of Building Painters, Union of Bookshop Employees and Workers in Related Workhouses, Union of Woodworkers and Carpenters and the Union of Professional and Amateur Photographers. Since then a further eight unions have been dissolved: Union of Crystal Workers, Union of Welders and Metalworkers, Union of Confectionery Workers, Union of Drivers and Co-drivers of light and heavy lorries, Union of Workers in the Cereal and Dried Fruits Industry (all these unions operated in the Tehran region), Union of Pipeline, Communications and Structural Workers, Union of Stonecutters, Union of Meat Traders (these three unions operated in the Shakir-e-Rey region).

B. The Government's reply

1. 666. In its communication of 30 May 1983, the Government states that the alleged issue behind the demonstrations and strikes, namely increased working hours, is ill-founded because working hours numbered 48 per week under the former regime and were reduced to 44 by an announcement of the Islamic Revolution Council dated 14 June 1980. In addition, claims the Government, under the Labour Code, Fridays have always been the weekly rest day of workers, in addition to which - depending on agreement between the workers and employers - Thursdays or every other Thursday in a month can also be taken as a holiday. The Government denies that any circular contrary to this state of affairs has been issued.
2. 667. According to the Government, the disturbances in the Pars Factory involved a few so-called workers (not the 1,700 stated by the complainant) and were not related to hours of work. It was rather a group of terrorists, which intended to close the factory and prevent production by starting a disturbance. The Government stresses that the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran will oppose any groups of opportunists and agencies attached to foreign governments which attempt to cause disturbances and stoppages of work in production, industrial or agricultural units.
3. 668. The Government states that the people listed as Nos. 3, 4, 6, 7, 11, 13, 19, 20, 26, 32, 33, 36, 39, 42 and 44 in the Annex were arrested on charges of backing and participating in disturbances and of relations with "illegal" terrorist groups. After trial and sentencing by the courts, they were expelled from the factory. According to the Government, the remaining 29 persons listed by the complainant are still employed at the factory.
4. 669. Regarding the alleged interference at workplaces by the Government through the "Islamic Associations", the Government states that these bodies were formed after the Revolution to lead and give religious and cultural guidance to the workers. It points out that the "Islamic Councils" were formed to protect the rights of the workers by participating in the decision-making process and co-operation with the management. According to the Government, both bodies developed of and by themselves within the factories and their members are freely elected from among the workers; through these bodies steps have been taken towards the cultural, welfare and professional affairs of the workers. In addition, the Government states that every worker can use the Islamic Councils to enforce his rights or can act individually, and therefore Iran does not need strong security forces as is indicated in the complaint. It claims that the workers themselves will not allow any disturbances, disorder or chaos on the part of elements attached to foreign powers and they themselves take care of any thing or person which tries to prevent production or stops work.
5. 670. As regards the strike in the Telecommunications Office and the consequent arrest of a large number of employees, the Government states that this allegation is without any foundation in fact.
6. 671. The Governments states that the trade unions listed by the complainant were dissolved and the activities of their Executive Boards declared to be illegal because the legal terms of the Executive Boards had expired and no new elections had been held. The Government points out generally that if any trade union violates its legal duties and the laws of the country, its illegal activities will be prevented and it may be dissolved.

C. The Committee's conclusions

1. 672. The Committee notes that this case concerns allegations of, arrests and dismissals of workers after strike action in April and May 1982 and the dissolution by administrative authority of 15 named trade unions since July 1982.
2. 673. The Committee also notes the Government's detailed statements describing the actual strike issues - hours of work and days off, and the role of Islamic Societies in factories - which are given as background information to the labour disputes issue which is the subject of specific allegations concerning arrests and dismissals in this case.
3. 674. As regards the arrest by security forces of 44 named workers after strike action in the Pars/General Motors Factory on 22 April 1982, the Committee notes the Government's statement that 15 of them were arrested and tried on charges of leading and participating in disturbances and of relations with illegal terrorist groups and were subsequently dismissed. As this information stands in direct contradiction to the allegation that the arrests were due to strike action, and as neither the complainant nor the Government supply more detailed evidence or information in support of their assertions, the Committee would recall that in oases of work stoppages intervention by security forces should be limited to the maintenance of public order.' Furthermore, the Committee has stated in the past that arrests and dismissals of strikers on a large scale involve serious dangers of abuse and place freedom of association in grave jeopardy.
4. 675. The Committee would point out that it considers the right to strike as being one of the principle means available to workers to defend their economic and social interests, and in this connection, it notes that section 27(c) of the Iran Labour Code, 1959 as amended, lists among the main rights and functions of trade unions, federations and confederations "the defence of the occupational rights and interests of their members".
5. 676. The Committee notes that while the other 29 named workers are still employed at the workplace concerned, the Government does not reply to the allegation that these workers were arrested after the strike action in April 1982. The Committee therefore asks the Government to send its observations as soon as possible on this allegation.
6. 677. As regards the dissolution of 15 named trade unions by administrative action, the Committee notes the Government's statement that the activities of their Executive Boards were declared to be illegal and the organisations dissolved for failure to comply with the national laws i.e. failure to hold new elections before the expiry of the legal mandate of the various Boards. The Committee observes, however, that the Labour Code makes no mention of dissolution of workers' organisations for such omissions. It would accordingly draw the Government's attention to the importance of the principle of freedom of association according to which workers' organisations should not be dissolved or suspended by administrative authority.' It would request the Government to rescind the dissolution orders and asks it to keep the Committee informed of any steps taken to this end.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 678. In these circumstances, the Committee recommends the Governing Body to approve this interim report, in particular the following conclusions:
   • (a) As regards the arrest and dismissals of 15 named workers after strike action in April 1982, the Committee, while noting the contradictory reasons for the arrests given by the Government and the complainant, can only recall that during cases of work stoppages the intervention by security forces should be limited to the maintenance of public order. Furthermore, it recalls that the arrests and dismissals of strikers on a large scale involve serious dangers of abuse and place freedom of association in grave jeopardy.
   • (b) As regards the alleged arrest of 29 other named workers as a consequence of the same strike action in April 1982, the Committee notes that the Government does not deny that they were arrested, at that time, but merely states that they are still employed at the workplace concerned. It accordingly asks the Government to supply its observations on this aspect of the case as soon as possible.
   • (c) As regards the dissolution by administrative authority of 15 named trade unions since July 1982, the Committee observes that, despite the Government's statement that such action was due to non-compliance with national laws concerning the holding of trade union elections, no such provision appears in the Labour Code. The Committee accordingly draws the Government's attention to the principle that workers' organisations should not be dissolved or suspended by administrative authority; it requests the Government to rescind the dissolution orders and to keep the Committee informed of any steps taken to this end.

Z. ANNEX

• List of workers allegedly arrested during the strike in the Pars Factory on 22 April 1982
  1. 1 Hassan Fashtootia - Saloon cars section
  2. 2 Mohsen Hefazat - Industrial engineering section
  3. 3 Mehdi Arnaghy - Laboratory section
  4. 4 Abdolhamid Kamali - Quality control section
  5. 5 Hossein Rajabi - Quality control section
  6. 6 Mehdi Gharbi - Administrative section
  7. 7 Massoud Khosh-Naghsh - Quality control section
  8. 8 Noor-Ali Ramezan-Nezhad - Saloon cars section
  9. 9 Esmaeel Ghassemi - Trucks section
  10. 10 Mohammad Shaikhlor - Truck maintenance
  11. 11 Saeed Maali - Engineering section
  12. 12 Akbar Khosravi - Filing office
  13. 13 Hossein Ranjbar - Quality control section
  14. 14 Mohammad Malek-Mohammadi - Security guard
  15. 15 Massoud Ebrahimi - Specification department
  16. 16 Farrokh Mohammad-Ghardavi - Inspection
  17. 17 Mir-Ali Missaghi - Painting section
  18. 18 Mohammad-Reza Ghalch - Heavy press section
  19. 19 Mohammad Moradi - Production engineer
  20. 20 Massoud Sattarian - Accountant
  21. 21 Firooz Rezakhani - Transport of raw materials
  22. 22 Arayesh - Press section
  23. 23 Majid Vossooghifar - Accountant
  24. 24 Gholam-Reza Hosseini - Press section
  25. 25 Khanagha Soleimani - Discs section
  26. 26 Ali-Asghar Shamloo - Cadillac cars
  27. 27 Abolghassem Sarem - Trucks section
  28. 28 Ghassem Dorsar-Nezhad - Discs section
  29. 29 Abdollah Agari - Spare-parts sales department
  30. 30 Ali Ghoraeeloo - Discs chassis section
  31. 31 Mohammad-Esmaeel Golbarg - Internal transport
  32. 32 Majid Soltanzadeh - Supply section
  33. 33 Ebrahim Javanbakht - Discs and truck production
  34. 34 Esmaeel Nademinezhad - Discs section
  35. 35 Seyyed Jan-Ali Tahmasbi - Trucks section
  36. 36 Ali-Asghar (surname unspecified)
  37. 37 Sharam (surname unspecified) - Accountant
  38. 38 Mohammad-Hassan (surname unspecified) - Press section
  39. 39 Massoud Hojjatt-Panah - Production engineer
  40. 40 Ghassem Mojarrad - Production engineer
  41. 41 Parviz Vadood - Internal transport
  42. 42 Mohammad-Ali Shojaii - Discs section
  43. 43 Fatemeh (surname specified) - Industrial engineer
  44. 44 Shahla (surname unspecified) - Administrative section