Hundreds of Iranian workers, including those employed in the strategic energy sector, went on strikes across the country on Saturday, Radio Farda reports.
According to the outlet, strikes were reported in a number of refiners in the country's south, including Abadan, Parsian and Qeshm refineries.
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A general view of the Setareh Khalij Fars (Star of the Persian Gulf) petrol refinery in the Gulf port city of Bandar Abbas
(Photo: AFP)
Protests also hit Iran's Hepco, an industrial machinery manufacturer, and a strike has been on for almost 50 days at the Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Industrial Complex in Khuzestan region, recently shaken by anti-government protests, the outlet reports.
The demands are said to be similar at most of the sites, with workers demanding their wages, long overdue, and benefits. Iran's state media cited a senior officer with one of the affected refineries as claiming that the workers seek pay rises.
Iran's economy has been pummeled hard by the return of the U.S. sanctions, reimposed in the wake of Washington's pullout from the 2015 nuclear agreement, and the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
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A woman wearing mask and gloves prays over the grave of her mother who died from COVID-19 at a cemetery on the outskirts of Babol, northern Iran
(Photo: AP)
On Sunday, the country reported the highest number of new infections in about a month, with 2,685 new patients raising the official cumulative total to 309,437.
Over the past 24 hours, 208 Iranians died of the disease, bringing the country's death toll to 17,190 - the highest number in the Middle East.
Earlier, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said the real total of infections could count in millions, not thousands, with other officials later downplaying the figure.