The Union of Metalworkers and Mechanics of Iran (UMMI) challenges the legitimacy of the theocratic regime’s delegation at the ILO 2024 Annual Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, to represent Iranian workers’ interests. Their appeal reads as follows…

To the Esteemed Leadership of IndustriALL Global Union:

We, the Union of Metalworkers and Mechanics of Iran, write to you with grave concerns regarding the misrepresentation of Iranian workers at the annual International Labour Organization (ILO) conference.

Recent reports in Iran’s state-sanctioned media have highlighted the presence of an official Iranian delegation at the ILO conference. This delegation, in addition to government representatives and employer representatives, includes individuals falsely presented as “worker representatives.” These individuals are, in reality, handpicked by government-affiliated structures and are under the direct control of the Iranian Ministry of Labor.

We emphatically state that this Iranian delegation does not include any genuine representatives of Iran’s working class. The Iranian Ministry of Labor, through its repeated disregard for ILO conventions and its suppression of trade unions, has ensured that the voices of true worker representatives are silenced.

The Union of Metalworkers and Mechanics of Iran strongly (UMMI) condemns this misrepresentation, which blatantly violates the spirit of ILO protocols and international norms. We urge IndustriALL Global Union to take decisive action at the 2024 Annual ILO Conference to amplify the voices of Iranian workers and expose this blatant injustice.

As you and the genuine trade union confederations of the world are well aware, Iranian workers face a dire reality:

• Wages are four times below the poverty line.
• Healthcare services are being dismantled.
• Trade unions are systematically ignored and repressed.
• ILO conventions, including tripartism, are repeatedly flouted.
• This year, the government’s minimum wage decree failed to even garner the signatures of the worker representatives on the Iranian delegation.

The Union of Metalworkers and Mechanics of Iran (UMMI), as a member union of IndustriALL Global Union, demands that you:

1. Reject the participation of this handpicked group within the Iranian delegation, as they do not represent the Iranian working class.
2. Declare that this delegation, due to its flagrant disregard for ILO conventions, lacks the legitimacy to participate in the ILO conference.

The truth is that genuine worker representatives in Iran do exist. Many of them are currently imprisoned for daring to defend workers’ rights and demand the implementation of ILO conventions.

We thank you for your anticipated effective action in this matter.

In Solidarity,

Metalworkers and Mechanics Syndicate of Iran

June 4, 2024