Spate of Suicides Raise Concerns Over Iranian Petchem Co.

According to a report by ILNA news agency in Tehran, Heydar Mohseni, a married father of two, took his own life on Thursday after receiving a dismissal order following 18 years of service at the petrochemical complex in the southwestern province of Ilam. This marks the fourth such incident within the past 12 months.

The news of Mohseni's suicide prompted a gathering of workers at the petrochemical area and the Chovar governorate. As a consequence, the Chovar security council restricted the entry of several petrochemical managers into the workplace. Nevertheless, some workers expressed concern that those responsible for Mohseni's dismissal have yet to face repercussions.

In a similar incident in December, Arash Tabarrork, a contracted worker at the plant, committed suicide after ingesting aluminum phosphide after he was prohibited from entering Chovar Petrochemical Company. Furthermore, in August 2022, Mohammad Mansouri and Ali Mohammad Karimi, both young workers, also took their lives within a 24-hour period.

Reports indicate that employees at Chovar have to endure hard working conditions and receive very low wages. This, compounded with worsening economic situation in Iran has contributed to unbearable livelihood problems and have driven at least 10 individuals to end their lives between June and August 2022.

A notable issue highlighted by ILNA is the absence of an independent trade union organization for the over 1000 workers at Chovar Petrochemical, most of whom are contracted employees, meaning that they lack job security, insurance and benefits. Their appeals to the labor ministry and governorship have not yielded positive outcomes.