On May 22nd, Iran’s ever-deteriorating economic situation and the dire working conditions of truck drivers and owners triggered a nationwide strike. The strike quickly spread to over 163 towns and cities throughout Iran.
The lorry drivers and owners have been facing unbearable conditions for years. These include low wages, unfair freight rates, rampant inflation, lack of social insurance and welfare services, high costs of spare parts and fuel, and lack of legal protection. Despite repeatedly raising their demands, the Iranian regime has continuously ignored these just demands.
The Iranian regime’s first response was its standard one: brutal repression. According to a statement of the Union of Truck Owners and Drivers Organisations of All Iran, so far at least 20 drivers have been arrested, including 11 in Kermanshah (in Kermanshah Province), and also several drivers in Sanandaj (in Kurdistan Province) and Fars Province. They were beaten during their arrests and forced to make “confessions” as part of their interrogation by the regime’s thugs.
To divide and rule the lorry drivers, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the regime of broken promises, also adopted the tactic of promising to meet two of their demands. The IRI’s Road Administration Organisation agreed to solve the fuel quota and social security insurance problems.
The lorry drivers’ strike once again shows the colossal power of the working class when it is organised and united.
The Shahrokh Zamani Action Campaign wholeheartedly supports the truckers’ strike and urges them to continue their struggle until Iran’s capitalist oligarchy actually meets all their demands and solves their economic problems.
We also strongly condemn the arrest and continuing detention of the truckers and call for their immediate and unconditional release. We urge all trade unionists, socialists and other political activists to help us in defending the rights of all workers, political prisoners and social rights activists in Iran.
Shahrokh Zamani Action Campaign
30 May 2025
