Since the Islamic Republic government and its Ministry of Health have neglected to address the problems Iranian nurses are struggling with, they will not attend any ceremony held on the Nurses’ National Day across the country.
Dismissing the ceremonies as a “show-off”, the House of Nurse has reiterated in a statement that none of its members will participate in the annual ceremonies.
The state-run Iran Labor News Agency (ILNA) published the statement on Wednesday, December 25.
“When nurses are even deprived of the right to benefit from the laws concerning harmful and arduous jobs, do you expect them to participate in the annual ceremony?” the statement has demanded.
Furthermore, the statement has insisted that while nurses’ salary is only twenty-thirty million rials (approximately $150-250), and their overtime bonuses are overdue for months, participating in such celebrations does not make sense.
Nurses in Iran can hardly make ends meet, therefore, paying homage to their service is meaningless, the statement says.
With more than 80 million population, Iran needs an extra 100,000 nurses.
Around 1,000 nurses leave the country each year to pursue better pay and working conditions in Europe and North America, the Vice President of the Iranian Nursing Organization Mohammad Sharifi Moqddam said earlier this year.
“Most of the Iranian nurses emigrate to Australia, Canada, the U.K., The Netherlands, and Switzerland,” Moqaddam said. Turkey and Persian Gulf countries also draw many of Iran’s nurses with better pay and conditions.
Earlier in 2015, the Health Ministry officials had also announced that while Iran needed 120,000 extra nurses, more than 1,000 Iranian nurses leave the country and emigrate to Europe.
Source » radiofarda