Iran’s truckers park in resistance, calling on Teamsters to blow the horn of solidarity and bulldoze the regime’s roadblocks to fair pay.
Asphalt Uprising
In a country where inflation roars, freedoms suffocate, and protests are too often met with bullets, a different kind of resistance has risen from the asphalt: Iran’s truck drivers. For eleven days this spring, in more than 160 cities, they parked their rigs and refused to move, launching one of the largest strikes in the nation’s recent history. Their demands were not revolutionary—they were heartbreakingly basic. Yet in the Islamic Republic, even the pursuit of minimum dignity is a dangerous act of defiance.
These men and women, long overlooked in Iran’s political theatre, suddenly became a national force. Their struggle deserves more than quiet admiration; it deserves the outspoken solidarity of the global labor community—particularly the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. If the cause of labor means anything beyond borders, it must mean standing with those who risk not just jobs, but their lives.
Crushed Between Inflation and Extortion
Consider the daily arithmetic of survival. As of May 2025, the official salary for drivers of trucks and inter-city buses stood at 17.7 million tomans—about $208 per month—while the cost of a basic monthly “subsistence basket” exceeded 35 million tomans, roughly $412. This is not a gap; it is a canyon.
The state-run Social Security Organization—invoking the regime’s Seventh Development Plan—deducts an average of 4.7 million tomans (≈ $55) for insurance premiums, effectively taxing poverty. Diesel, nominally subsidized at 3,000 tomans per liter ($0.035), is often available only on the black market at 6,000 tomans ($0.07). And freight payments can languish for up to four months, leaving drivers to cover repairs, fuel, and family expenses out of pocket. In this system the only guaranteed profits accrue to conglomerates controlled by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the Revolutionary Guard.
“We Have Been Heard—and We Remain United”
On 21 May 2025 the wheels stopped. In a powerful collective voice, the Union of Iranian Truck Drivers and Transporters declared a nationwide strike, sparked by the regime’s failure to investigate the deaths of colleagues in Bandar Abbas.
“We have stood firm, we have been heard, and we remain united… Truck drivers do not merely keep the wheels of the economy turning—we are the pillars of dignity, honor, and resilience in this land,” their statement for the 40-day commemoration proclaimed.
What began with long-haul rigs soon drew in pickup owners, minibus drivers, teachers, nurses, retirees, and student activists. Together they shattered a media blackout, forced transport officials to retreat, and compelled the repeal of several punitive regulations. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), saluted the strike as “an act of moral courage” and a promise that the blood of the fallen would not be spilled in vain. But victories in Iran are always tentative. Strike leaders already face arrest or disappearance, and the union’s central demand—the immediate, unconditional release of all detained drivers—remains unmet.
The Nuclear Negotiations Backdrop
All of this unfolds while President Donald Trump, now in his second term, pursues a revived nuclear agreement with Tehran. Five rounds of shuttle diplomacy in Oman have produced headlines about a deal “very close” to signing, even as Supreme Leader Khamenei rejects U.S. proposals as infringements on sovereignty reuters.com. Trump touts the talks as the best chance to avert war, while doubling down on sanctions to keep pressure high reuters.com.
For Iran’s rulers, the negotiations are political theater: proof that the nation’s woes stem from Washington, the Great Satan. State media blame every empty pantry on American hostility. Yet in the streets a different chant drowns out the propaganda:
« دشمن ما همینجاست، دروغ میگن آمریکاست »“Our enemy is right here; they lie when they say it’s America.”
The slogan is heard from oil towns in Khuzestan to factory gates outside Tabriz, voiced by students, retirees, shopkeepers, and, yes, truckers. It exposes a widening gulf between the regime’s scapegoating narrative and the people’s lived reality. While diplomats argue enrichment percentages in Muscat hotels, Iranian workers confront a more basic enrichment—the daily theft of their wages and futures by a clerical-military oligarchy.
Why the Teamsters Should Care
This story should resonate deeply with Teamsters President Sean O’Brien and America’s broader labor movement. The Teamsters’ own saga is etched in strikes, sweat, and the refusal to bow to corrupt power—from the Hoffa battles of the 1960s to the UPS walkout of 1997 and today’s Amazon showdowns. Iranian truckers walk a parallel road—but through a darker forest. They face not blacklists or layoffs, but lashes, prison terms, and gallows. Their unions are not protected by law; they are criminalized by it.
If a global labor movement means anything, it cannot stop at U.S. borders. The Teamsters possess muscle and moral capital earned over a century; their public voice can help shield Iranian drivers from retaliation. Silence is complicity. A clear statement from American labor leaders—endorsing the strike’s demands and calling for the release of detainees—could quite literally save lives.
From Tehran to Detroit: A Shared Struggle
The fight for labor rights in Iran might seem distant from loading docks in Oakland or the freight yards of Chicago. Yet the core demand is identical: respect, fairness, and the right to live with dignity. Iranian truckers have already shifted the conversation inside Iran, proving that unity can rattle tyranny even when tyrants hold all the weapons. But visibility is their best defense, and visibility begins with solidarity.
To union leaders in America: lend your voice. Pass resolutions. Send letters. Record videos. Speak their names. Every line of solidarity drawn today is a line of defense tomorrow. And every movement that challenges oppression abroad sharpens the tools we wield against exploitation here at home.
As an Iranian in exile with deep ties to workers’ and activists’ networks across the country, I stand ready to supply first-hand testimonies—stories that put human faces to statistics and convert concern into concrete advocacy. Let us ensure those voices are not silenced. A public show of solidarity from millions of union members, starting with the Teamsters, could be the lifeline these drivers need.
A Road Paved with Courage
The highways of Iran are pitted with hardship, but they are also paved with courage. Somewhere tonight, a driver weighing 35 tons of cargo and 35 years of repression is deciding whether to risk everything for justice. Let him know he does not drive alone.
For inquiries or to coordinate statements of support, contact Jalal Arani via Substack or direct union outreach channels.
