September 9, 2005: In the afternoon of Wednesday, September 7^th, 2005, the Iranian security forces arrested several members of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company-Vahed, among them MM. Mansour Ossanlou, the Syndicate’s director, Ebrahim Madadi, syndicate’s deputy director, Abbas Najand Koodaki, Naser Gholami, Davood Norouzi, Hassan Haj Alivand and Nemat Amirkhani. According to the latest news, following the protest of bus drivers of Tehran on the September 7th the company launched a complaint against the members of the syndicate. In particular, Mr. Mostafa Nourian, the CEO of the state-owned bus company, and his deputy, Mr. Teimouri, have openly targeted the union and its leadership. All these workers were taken to the court on September 8^th and subsequently were released on bail. They have been charged with “disturbance of public order”.

According to ISNA news agency, on Wednesday September 7, 2005, bus drivers in Tehran left their lights on while driving passengers around the city, in protest against unpaid wages and benefits. One of these drivers told an ISNA reporter: Vahed Transportation Company should have paid 40,000 Toman (One US dollar equals 873 Toman-as of September 8, 2005) worth of vouchers to its drivers on special occasions, just as it pays to other city workers; however, this has not materialized. He added that after six months, they should have paid the drivers 160,000 Toman in the form of vouchers, but they only agreed to pay 40,000, of which amount they deducted 20,000 for the drivers’ uniforms.

Another driver with 16 years of seniority on the job complained about his wages and benefits, saying: The salary of a driver toiling alone in the strenuous traffic of Tehran is 6,000 Toman a day, of which between 180,000 to 200,000 a month is deducted in taxes and insurance payments. The driver added: I have to pay 130,000 Toman a month for rent, which leaves me little to feed my family on.

The head of one of the bus lines said he receives the same salary as the drivers and added: To get a loan from the company, you have to go to the company’s office several times just to receive a small amount and if you object, they immediately threaten to fire you.

Another driver asks if Tehran’s Mayor id ignorant of the drivers’ problems.

Mr. Mostafa Nourian, the C.E.O. of the Bus Transport Company in Tehran and suburbs says: The drivers’ complaints are unfounded and their demands are illegal. They have received their pays but they expect to be treated like other city workers, whereas we think that Vahed Transport Company is independent of the city hall. He then added: Nevertheless, last year 6.5 billion Toman was allocated to various types of financial aid to Vahed Company drivers. He also said that the 20,000 Toman were not deducted from the driver’s benefits; rather they were given this amount to purchase their uniforms.

In his opinion, the bus drivers’ union in Tehran and some previously fired drivers are inciting workers to protest. Ebrahim Madadi, deputy director of the union of bus drivers of Tehran and suburbs told ISNA reporter that following the unmet demands of the drivers and the dismissal of 17 of them, today we are leaving our lights on in protest, in order to draw the attention of those responsible for this situation to our cause. He then added: Unfortunately, the officials do not respond appropriately to the grievances of the drivers, expressed both in person and in writing.

The demands of these workers include: The classification of jobs and the implementation of collective agreements, the elimination of discrimination and unequal treatment of different workers in terms of benefits, bonuses, etc., permanent hiring of contract drivers and other workers after three months, the minimum wages to be raised to the official line of poverty, which is 285000 Toman, and the reinstatement of all sacked workers. Mr. Madadi also added that they met with the managers several times and brought up workers’ grievances; however, they were met with lay offs and dismissals, over time cuts, change of routes and bus lines, cancellation of promotions and reprimands, which were totally unjustifiable. Mr. Madadi added that three weeks ago they met with the directors of the Vahed Transportation Company and brought up their demands. They promised to respond to the demands within a week but they still haven’t done so. The drivers are deprived of their legitimate rights. It should be noted that 10,500 drivers are at work every day during the morning and afternoon shifts in Tehran.

The 17 leaders and members of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company-Vahed were fired between April and June 2005. All 17 workers had been either involved in the creation of the union, the organizing of the first general assembly or had been elected to the board of directors at the general assembly on 3 June 2005.

The Iranian government and employers must face persistent international pressure on their international legal obligation to respect the workers’ legitimate right to organize, collective bargaining, strike, assembly and freedom of expression.