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Bus workers with the Union of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company (UWTSBC) in Tehran, Iran went on strike at the end of January. When they arrived at the picket lines, government security forces used physical abuse and intimidation to get them back to work. Those who refused were arrested, along with their family members, who were taken from their homes in the middle of the night. The physical abuse continued while the bus workers were in jail at Evin prison, which is notorious for torture and other abuses.

The striking bus workers are demanding the right to bargain collectively and protesting the month-long detention of UWTSBC Director Mansour Osanloo. Osanloo is being detained without any formal charges, access to his lawyers, or proper medical attention.

Established in 1969, the UWTSBC had been inactive since 1979. But in 2004, workers revived trade union activities in Iran, though the government still refuses to recognize the UWTSBC.

Join the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions in condemning the abuse and arrests by sending a message to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Go to labourstart.org and click on the Act Now! link in the Iran section to send an email calling for the immediate release of the arrested bus workers.

Send letters to the Minister of Industry and Mines: Shahid Kalantari, Ostad Negatollahi St. Ferdosi SQ, Tehran, I.R. Iran, 15875.

Expiration Date:
Tue, 06/06/2006 - 6:00pm