Labor Conditions

Article 34: All that the worker validly receives in accordance with the labor contract, whether it be salary or family support, expenses for housing, food, transportation, non-financial benefits, productivity bonuses, annual profit-sharing, etc., are compensation for effort.

Article 35: Wages are composed of financial and non-financial benefits – all that is paid to the worker in exchange for labor.

Note 1: Should the wages be related to the number of hours of labor, the wages are hourly wages. Should they be based on the accomplishment of a job in a fixed time, they are called labor-hourly wages.

Note 2: The criteria and conditions related to hourly wages, labor-hourly wages, payment for a job, and jobs which can be included in this article are to be drafted by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and confirmed by the Supreme Labor Council. The maximum number of hours of work stipulated by the aforementioned article must not be greater than the legal maximum number of hours of work.

Article 36: Fixed wages are composed of all wages for a job and fixed benefits to be paid for this job.

Note 1: In workplaces which do not have a job-value classification system, fixed benefits to be paid according to the job are benefits which are paid in accordance with the nature of the job or the labor environment and to raise the ordinary level of wages per hour of work. This includes benefits for the difficulty of the job, benefits for supervision, and extraordinary jobs.

Note 2: In workplaces in which job-value classification has been implemented, the salary of the group or level will form the base pay.

Note 3: Welfare and motivational benefits such as housing and food allowances and family support, productivity allowances, and annual profit-sharing are not considered part of the fixed salary or base salary.

Article 37: Salaries must be paid at regular intervals and on days which are not holidays and during working hours in the currency of the land or, upon the agreement of both sides, by a bank check or in accordance with the following conditions:

a)       Should the sum of the wages be determined on a daily or hourly basis according to the workplace’s contract or custom, their payment must be made after accounts at the end of the day or week, or once every fifteen days in accordance with the hours of work or the days of work performed.

b)      Should the payment be made monthly according to the workplace’s contract or custom, this payment must be made at the end of the month. In this way, the aforementioned salary is to be called wages [hoquq].

Note: On months with thirty-one days, wages and benefits must be accounted for on a thirty-one day basis and be paid to the worker.

Article 38: For the performance of equal work under equal circumstances in a single workplace, women and men must be paid equal amounts. Discrimination in determining the rate of pay on the basis of age, gender, race, ethnicity, or political or religious opinion is prohibited.

Article 39: The wages and benefits of workers who were occupied half-time or less than the legal hours will have their salaries and benefits prorated relative to the hours of work they performed.

Article 40: In cases in which a portion of the wages are not paid in cash, in accordance with the agreement of both parties, the cash value determined for such payments must be fair and reasonable.

Article 41: The Supreme Labor Council is obliged every year to determine a minimum wage for various parts of the country and for various industries based on the following criteria:

1)      Workers’ minimum wage, taking into account the percentage of inflation which is announced by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic.

2)      Workers’ minimum wage without considering their physical and mental condition or the nature of the job must be sufficient to maintain a family, the average number of whom is to be announced by the official authorities.

Article 42: The minimum wage posed in Article 41 of this law must be entirely paid in cash. Non-cash payments in every case in which they are envisioned in the contract are to be considered payments supplementing the minimal wage.

Article 43: Part-time workers who work on Fridays and official holidays and leaves deserve to receive a salary and obtain the average daily wage of their part-time work on the last month they worked. In any case, the sum they are paid must not be less than the minimum legal wage.

Article 44: Should the worker be in debt to his employer, he may pay only what is above the minimum wage as ordered by the court. In any event, this sum must not be more than a quarter of the worker’s wages.

Note: Subsidies and awards to workers who are to be subsidized are exceptions to the rule and follow civil law provisions.

Article 45: An employer has the right to dock a worker’s wages under the following circumstances:

a)      Should the law clearly permit it.

b)      Should the employer have given the wages as cash aid to the worker.

c)      Should they be installments of loans which the employer had given the worker in accordance with the associated benefits.

d)      Should an extra sum have been paid in error.

e)      Should it have taken the form of the rent of a house belonging to an organization (whose value has been agreed upon by both parties) on the condition that it is a rental, as agreed upon by both parties.

Article 46: For workers who, in accordance with the contract or a subsequent agreement, have been sent on tasks which are outside the area of service, they will receive a special task’s bonus. This bonus must not be less than the workers’ fixed salary or daily base salary. Similarly, the employer is obliged to secure means of their leaving and returning.

Note: For this task to be considered covered [by this article], the worker must be at least fifty km from his principle workplace to perform it or have no choice but to spend at least one night at his job site.

Article 47: To encourage more and better-quality production, decrease waste, increase commitment, and raise the level of worker’s income, both parties may enter into to a contract for receiving and paying productivity rewards in accordance with the agreement of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Article 48: In order to prevent others’ work from being taken advantage of, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs is obliged to prepare a job-value classification system using standards of jobs and customs of workers’ jobs in the country.

Article 49: In order to establish sound workplace relations with the labor market in wages and to specify the description of duties and the scope of responsibility for different jobs, the employers included in this law are obliged, in cooperation with the workplace’s Committee to Classify Workplace Jobs or in cooperation with the appropriate foundation, to prepare a plan for classifying jobs. This shall be implemented after obtaining the support of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Note 1: The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs will determine and declare a plan and executive bylaws to evaluate the jobs of the workplaces covered by this article taking into account the number of workers and the date of the plan’s implementation.

Note 2: The fitness of foundations and individuals who prepare the plans for classifying jobs in workplaces must be confirmed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Note 3: Differences resulting from the implementation of the plan to classify jobs will be investigated by the Conflict Resolution Panel with the agreement of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Article 50: Should the employers covered by this law not have had the jobs in their workplaces classified after deadlines set by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, this ministry will assign the fulfillment of this duty to an office of a technical consultative foundation or individuals who are appropriate (under Note 2 of Article 49).

Note: The employer, in addition to paying the expenses related to this matter, is obliged to pay the Public Treasury a fine of 50% of the cost of consultation as calculated by the country’s public income to the General Treasurer. The employer must pay the estimated difference in wages resulting from the implementation of the plan to evaluate jobs from a day determined by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Article 51: The hours of work in this law are the time interval in which a worker places his strength or time at the disposal of an employer to perform work. Aside from cases which are exceptions to this law, workers’ work hours must not exceed 8 hours in a full day.

Note 1: The employer, in agreement with the workers [or] their legal representative or representatives can fix the hours of work on some days of the week to be less than the time stipulated and on other days more, on the condition that the total number of hours of work for each week not exceed 44.

Note 2: In agricultural work, the employer may, in agreement with the workers [or] their legal representative or representatives, arrange the hours of work in a full day in accordance with work, custom, or the seasons.

Article 52: In difficult, injurious, or underground work, the hours of work must not exceed six per day or 36 per week.

Note: Difficult, injurious, or underground work shall be in accordance with a bylaw which the Supreme Council for Technical Safety and Work Health and the Supreme Labor Council shall draft and the Ministers of Labor and Social Affairs and Health, Medicine, and Medical Training shall confirm.

Article 53: Daytime work is work accomplished from 6 am to 10 pm. Night work is work which is accomplished from 10 pm until 6 am. Mixed work is work part of which is accomplished during the day and part of which is accomplished at night. In mixed work, the worker enjoys the benefit mentioned in Article 58 during the hours which are considered part of night work.

Article 54: Work at variously allotted times is work which as such cannot be accomplished in consecutive hours, but which is done at a specific time of the full day.

Note: The interval between variously allotted times is at the worker’s discretion. His presence at the workplace is not necessary. In work at variously allotted times, the hours of work and the intervals between variously allotted times as well as extra work must not be more than 15 hours from start to finish during a full day. The hour at which the work begins and ends and the interval between allotted times are to be determined with the agreement of both parties, by the type of work, and by the workplace’s custom.

Article 55: Work at variously allotted times consists of work which cycles through the month, so that sometimes it is done in the morning or the afternoon or the evening.

Article 56: A worker who works at variously allotted times throughout the month and whose allotted times of work occur during the morning and evening receives a 10% bonus and, should they occur in the morning and evening and night, a 15% bonus, and, should they occur in the morning and evening or the afternoon and night, a 22.5% bonus for special work hours.

Article 57: In work at allotted times, it is possible that the hours of work will exceed eight for a full day or 44 for a week, but the total hours of work in four consecutive weeks must not exceed 176.

Article 58: For each hour of work at night, a 35% bonus is added to the wages of an hour’s ordinary work for workers who do not work at different allotted times.

Article 59: In ordinary circumstances, giving overtime to a worker is permissible under the following conditions:

a)      The worker’s consent.

b)      The payment of a 40% bonus over the wages for each hour of ordinary work.

Note: The hours of overtime referred to the workers must not exceed 4 (except under extraordinary circumstances and with the agreement of both parties).

Article 60: It is permissible to grant overtime work at the employer’s discretion on the condition of the payment for overtime (as stipulated in Article 59 condition b) and for a duration of time for which it is needed owing to the following situations. The maximum overtime permitted in this article shall be eight hours per day (except under extraordinary circumstances and with the agreement of both parties).

a)      The prevention of predictable events or repairing damage suffered as a result of these events.

b)      Assistance to the workplace’s activity should this activity be cut off as the result of a natural event or situation such as a flood, an earthquake, or some other unforeseeable event.

Note 1: After this overtime is performed in the above cases, the manager is obliged to inform the [local] Bureau of Labor and Social Affairs of the situation in the space of at most 48 hours to determine the necessity of overtime and its duration.

Note 2: Should the local Bureau of Labor and Social Affairs not uphold the necessity of overtime, the employer shall be obliged to pay a fine and damages suffered by the workers.

Article 61: Granting overtime to workers who work nights or do dangerous, difficult, or hazardous jobs is forbidden.

Article 62: Friday is the weekly paid day off for workers.

Note 1:  In matters related to public service such as water, electricity, bus driving, or in workplaces which by their nature, the necessities of the job, or with the agreement of both parties a day other than [Friday] is chosen permanently for the day off, this day shall serve as the day off. In any case, one day a week must be chosen to be the day of closure. Workers who under any circumstances work on Fridays will receive a 40% bonus for not using the Friday day off.

Note 2: Should the days of work in a week be fewer than six, the salary for the worker’s weekly day off will be one-sixth of the total salary or wages received by him during the days of the week he worked.

Note 3: Workplaces in which, by performing their duties in 5 days of work per week for the 44 legal hours of work, the workers benefit from two days off, the wages of each of the weekly two days off will be equal to the workers’ daily salary.

Article 63: In addition to the country’s official holidays, Worker’s Day (11 Ordibehesht [approximately, May 1]) is an official holiday for the workers.

Article 64: Workers’ annual paid leave, utilizing four Fridays’ wages, is a month in all. The other days’ vacations are not counted among the leaves. For less than a year’s work, the aforementioned leave is prorated for the period of work performed.

Article 65: Annual paid leave for workers employed in difficult or hazardous jobs is five weeks. Using this leave shall, if possible, be in two stages and at the end of each six month’s work.

Article 66: A worker may not save more than nine days of his annual leave.

Article 67: Every worker has the right to use only one month as a paid leave along with an unpaid leave in order to perform his duty for the obligatory hajj during his entire time at work.

Article 68: The amount of workers’ paid leaves is determined in part by the number of months the worker [was on the job].

Article 69: The day of utilizing a leave is to be determined by agreement between the worker and the employer. Should there be a difference between them, the view of the local Bureau of Labor and Social Affairs must be implemented.

Note: Regarding serial jobs and all the jobs which require the presence of a fixed minimum of workers on working days, the employer is obliged to organize a timetable for workers’ leaves for the last three months of the year for the upcoming year and announce it after obtaining the support of the Islamic Labor Council or the Craft Society or the workers’ representative.

Article 70: A leave of less than one work day is considered a paid leave.

Article 71: Should the labor contract be dissolved or end or should the worker retire or be completely incapacitated or should the workplace shut down, the benefits connected to the worker’s time of paid leave would accrue to him and, should he have died, to his heirs.

Article 72: The manner of workers’ leaves without pay and their duration and the conditions for their returning [to work] after using them are to be determined through the written agreement of the worker or his legal representative and the employer.

Article 73: All workers have the right to enjoy three days leave under the following conditions:

a)      Permanent marriage.

b)      The death of a spouse, father, mother, or son.

Article 74: The duration of a medical leave, with the support of the Social Security Organization, is considered part of the workers’ work and retirement record.

Article 75: Performing dangerous, difficult, or hazardous work, as well as carrying loads greater than that permitted by hand and without the use of mechanical means is forbidden for women workers. A schedule, classification, and scale for such issues will be drafted by the Supreme Labor Council and confirmed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Article 76: Pregnancy and maternal leave for woman workers will be 90 days all together. 45 days of this leave must, to the degree possible, be used after birth. For the birth of twins, 14 days will be added to the duration of the leave.

Note 1: After maternity leave ends, the woman worker returns to her previous job and this time is counted towards her record of service by the Social Security Organization.

Note 2: The wages for the days of her maternity leave shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of the Social Security Law.

Article 77: In cases where, in accordance with a determination of a doctor from the Social Security Organization, the type of work is found to be dangerous or difficult for a pregnant worker, the employer shall refer her to a job which is more appropriate and lighter, without loss in pay, throughout her period of pregnancy.

Article 78: In jobs which include a woman worker, the employer is obliged to give the nursing mother a half-hour break to nurse every three hours until the child passes his second year. This break shall be considered part of their hours of work. Similarly, the employer is obliged to set up childcare centers (nursing stations, nurseries, etc.) as is appropriate for the number of children, with due consideration given to their age groups.

Note: The Executive Bylaws [and] the regulations for founding and administering nursing stations and nurseries shall be drafted by the country’s Health Organization, and, after being confirmed by the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, be implemented.

Article 79: Employing people younger than 15 is completely forbidden.

Article 80: A worker who is between 15 and 18 years of age is called a young worker and when he is first hired, he must be subjected to a medical examination by the Social Security Organization.

Article 81: The doctor’s medical examination of a child worker must be renewed at least once a year and related documents kept in his hiring file. The doctor shall state his opinion on his fitness for the type of work and the strength of the young worker. Should the employer consider the job in question to be inappropriate, he is obliged to change the worker’s job to the best of his ability.

Article 82: The young worker’s daily hours of work are to be a half hour less than those of the ordinary worker. The manner in which this privilege is to be utilized is to be agreed upon by the worker and the employer.

Article 83: Granting young workers any sort of overtime or night work or granting them difficult, hazardous, or dangerous jobs or carrying loads by hand above the permissible limit and without utilizing mechanical means is forbidden.

Article 84: In jobs whose inherent nature or the conditions under which they are performed is hazardous for the physical or psychological health of the apprentice or the child worker, the minimum age of work shall be 18 years of age.  The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs shall determine this issue.