Social class in Iran

Last updated

Social classes in Iran. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

   Upper class (4.3%)
   Upper Middle-class (19%)
   Lower Middle-class (15%)
   Working class (45%)
   Low Class (16.7%)

Social classes in Iran have been divided up into upper class, propertied middle class, salaried middle class, working class, independent farmers, and rural wage earners. [6] A more recent source [4] divides Iranian classes into upper, middle class (about 32% of the population in 2000), [4] working class (about 45% of the labor force), [4] and lower class. Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says 60 percent of his country's wealth is controlled by just 300 people in Iran. [7] The gini coefficient was 0.38 in 2010 [8] and the Human Development Index at 0.749 in 2013. [9]

Contents

One of the main objectives of the Iranian Revolution was to have no social classes.[ citation needed ] In the post-revolutionary era, access to political power, an important basis for measuring influence and elite status in pre-revolutionary Iran, has continued to be important for ascribing status, even though the composition of the political elite has changed. For a decade after 1979, gaining entry to the political elite at the national or provincial level depended on having revolutionary credentials. These credentials depended on being able to provide evidence of having participated in the demonstrations and other revolutionary activities during 1978–79, and having a reputation for being a good Muslim. The necessary Muslim reputation was acquired by attending public prayers and observing Islamic codes of conduct in one's private life. Revolutionary credentials became less significant for the generation that matured after the early 1990s. Education, especially a college degree, became an informal substitute for revolutionary credentials. [10]

Upper class

In Iranian society, the top ten percent earners pay 3% of all income taxes, while in the United States the top 10% pay more than 70% of the total income taxes (US billionaires are collectively richer than their Iranian counterparts, however). [11] [ relevant? ] The postrevolutionary upper class consisted of some of the same social groups as the old elite, such as large landowners, industrialists, financiers, and large-scale merchants. Most of these groups have migrated out of Iran and their assets have been confiscated by the state. [12] A minority of the pre-revolutionary upper class continue to work and live within Iran. For the most part, however, such persons did not occupy positions of political influence. Those with political influence comprised senior clergy, high-ranking bureaucrats, executive officers of public and private corporations and charitable foundations, and wealthy entrepreneurs; none had been part of the pre-revolutionary economic and social elite. Although a reputation for piety and loyalty to the ideals of the Revolution initially was a more important attribute than family or wealth for participation in the post-revolutionary political elite, those who attained politically powerful positions received generous salaries that elevated them to the top income brackets and opened access to multiple legitimate opportunities for acquiring more wealth. The children of the new elite generally have been encouraged to get college educations, and postgraduate degrees from foreign universities have become status symbols since the mid-1990s. These social trends have gradually but informally altered the criteria for recruitment into the political elite: Possessing a university degree and having ties to a prominent religious or revolutionary family have become advantageous in the competition for politically influential positions. [4] As of 2016, Iran had an estimated three million people with more than 1 billion Tomans ($270,000), 32,000 "high net worth individuals" [13] with a net worth of at least $3 million, [3] 1,300 multimillionaires with net assets of $10 million or more and four billionaires. [14]

Then-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says 60 percent of his country's wealth is controlled by 300 people in Iran (out of a population of 80 million in 2016). [15] Rich Iranians, companies, and state-backed buyers will spend up to $8.5 billion on overseas real estate over the next five-to-10 years (2016). [14]

Middle class

After the Revolution, the composition of the middle class in Iran did not change significantly, but its size doubled from about 15 percent of the population in 1979 to more than 32 percent in 2000. Tajrishbazar.JPG
After the Revolution, the composition of the middle class in Iran did not change significantly, but its size doubled from about 15 percent of the population in 1979 to more than 32 percent in 2000.

After the revolution, the composition of the middle class did not change significantly, but its size doubled from about 15 percent of the population in 1979 to more than 32 percent in 2000. Several prerevolutionary social groups still were identifiable, including entrepreneurs, bazaar merchants, physicians, engineers, university teachers, managers of private and public concerns, civil servants, teachers, medium-scale landowners, junior military officers, and the middle ranks of the Shia clergy. New groups also emerged, including technicians in specialized fields such as communications, computers, electronics, and medical services; owners of small-scale factories employing fewer than 50 workers; owners of construction firms and transport companies; and professional staff of broadcast and print media. Merchants, especially those with ties to bazaar-based organizations even though their stores were physically located outside the traditional covered bazaars, gained access to political power that they had lacked before the Revolution. [4]

The prerevolutionary cultural divide between those middle-class individuals who had a secular outlook and those who valued a role for religion in both public and private life did not disappear. Since 1979, however, the political relationship between these two contrasting views has reversed. Whereas under the monarchy the state tried to restrict religion to the private sphere, under the Islamic Republic the state consciously has promoted religion in public life. Secularly oriented Iranians have tended to resent this dominant role of the religious outlook in politics and society, especially its manifestations in numerous laws and regulations that they perceive as interfering with their personal lives. Whereas the secular-religious divide cuts across all occupational groups, in general those who promote religious values and the public observance of prayers and religious rituals tend to be more heavily concentrated in the bazaar, security forces, and managerial positions in the bureaucracies than in other lines of work and other professions. [4]

Working class

Unemployment rate, per-capita income growth and minimum wage (2000-2009). Iran unemployement min-wage Per-capita-income-growth.jpg
Unemployment rate, per-capita income growth and minimum wage (2000–2009).

An urban industrial working class separate from the traditional artisan class of the towns has been in the process of formation since the early twentieth century. The industrialization programs of the Pahlavi shahs provided the impetus for the expansion of this class. By the early 1970s, a distinct working-class identity, 'kargaar', had emerged, although those who applied this term to themselves did not constitute a unified group. Rather, the working class was segmented by economic sectors: the oil industry, manufacturing, construction, and transportation; also, many members of the working class were employed as mechanics. The largest component, factory workers, numbered about 2.5 million on the eve of the Revolution, double the number in 1965, accounting for 25 percent of Iran's total labor force. [4]

Since 1979, the urban working class has continued to expand; by the early 2000s, it constituted more than 45 percent of the employed labor force. As was the situation before the Revolution, however, the workers within any one occupation did not share a common identity but rather were divided according to their perceived skills. For example, skilled construction workers, such as carpenters, electricians, and plumbers, earned significantly higher wages than the more numerous unskilled workers and tended to look down on them. Similar status differences were common among workers in the oil industry and manufacturing. An estimated 7 percent of all workers were Afghan refugees in the early 2000s. These workers were concentrated in unskilled jobs, especially in construction. Because most Afghan workers did not have work permits after 1992 and thus worked illegally, employers could pay them less than the daily minimum wage rates and not provide them with benefits required for Iranian workers. [4]

Under both the monarchy and the republic, the government has strictly controlled union activity. After the Revolution, the Ministry of Labor established the Workers' House to sponsor Islamic unions in large manufacturing concerns. These unions discourage strikes through a combination of cooptation of workers through periodic raises and bonuses and cooperation with authorities to identify and discipline workers who exhibit tendencies toward independence. The Islamic unions generally have been effective in preventing major strikes by workers; a long history of factionalism among different working-class occupational groups and between skilled and unskilled workers within individual industries has contributed to this relative success. Nevertheless, since the early 1990s scattered strikes have defied union control. In some instances, the strikes have been resolved peacefully through negotiations, while in other cases they have been repressed violently by security forces. [4]

Lower class

A homeless man in Ahvaz, Iran Homeless in iran, ahvaz.JPG
A homeless man in Ahvaz, Iran

The working class is part of the overall urban lower class, or mostazafin, a social stratum that includes all families whose household incomes place them marginally above, at, or below the officially defined poverty line. In cities with populations greater than 250,000, the lower class makes up an average of 40 to 50 percent of the total population; the lower-class proportion generally is less in smaller cities (50,000 to 250,000 population) and towns. [4] [16] In 2010, Iran's Department of Statistics announced that 10 million Iranians live under the absolute poverty line and 30 million live under the relative poverty line. [17] 3 million laborers have been excluded from those statistics, as their data is not registered anywhere. [18]

The lower class can be divided into two groups: the marginally poor, who receive regular incomes on a weekly or monthly basis; and the very poor, whose incomes vary from month to month and who thus experience difficulty in paying for food, housing, and utilities. Recipients of regular incomes include pensioners, industrial and construction workers, and people employed in the diverse services sector, such as attendants in barbershops, beauty salons, and public bathhouses, bakery workers, sales clerks, domestic servants, gardeners, garbage and trash collectors, painters and plasterers (of homes), porters, street cleaners, peddlers, street vendors, office cleaners, and laundry workers. These job categories, as well as others, also include at least one million workers who are employed only occasionally or seasonally, primarily as a result of the shortage of full-time positions in an economy that has had an official unemployment rate ranging between 10 and 15 percent of the labor force since the early 1990s. [19] Although many government agencies and private charities provide assistance to the poor, a social stigma is associated with accepting such aid, especially among adult men, whom others judge according to their ability to support a family. Among some marginally poor people in the largest cities, especially families with female heads of household, there has been an increasing tendency since the mid-1990s to rely on begging to supplement income, A few poor neighborhoods in the largest cities, such as 'Khakh-e sefid' in southeastern Tehran Province, have acquired negative reputations because gangs have established safe houses there for illegal activities such as prostitution, gambling, and drug trafficking. [4]

Out of the 15,000 homeless persons in Iran, 10,000 are men. [20] There are between 60,000 and 200,000 street children in Iran. [21]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social class</span> Hierarchical stratification of societies

A social class or social stratum is a grouping of people into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the working class, middle class, and upper class. Membership of a social class can for example be dependent on education, wealth, occupation, income, and belonging to a particular subculture or social network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Economy of Iran</span>

Iran is a mixed economy with a large public sector. Some 60% of Iran's economy is centrally planned.. Iran's economy is characterized by its hydrocarbon, agricultural, and service sectors, in addition to manufacturing and financial services, with over 40 industries directly involved in the Tehran Stock Exchange. The stock exchange has been one of the best performing exchanges in the world over the past decade. With 10% of the world's proven oil reserves and 15% of its gas reserves, Iran is considered an "energy superpower".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social class in the United States</span> Grouping Americans by some measure of social status

Social class in the United States refers to the idea of grouping Americans by some measure of social status, typically by economic status. However, it could also refer to social status and/or location. The idea that American society can be divided into social classes is disputed, and there are many competing class systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middle class</span> Class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy

The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Common definitions for the middle class range from the middle fifth of individuals on a nation's income ladder, to everyone but the poorest and wealthiest 20%. Theories like "Paradox of Interest" use decile groups and wealth distribution data to determine the size and wealth share of the middle class.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Revolution</span> 1963–1979 reforms by the Shah of Iran

The White Revolution or the Shah and People Revolution was a far-reaching series of reforms resulting in aggressive modernization in the Imperial State of Iran launched on 26 January 1963 by the Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, which lasted until 1979. The reforms resulted in a great redistribution of wealth to Iran's working class, explosive economic growth in subsequent decades, rapid urbanization, and deconstruction of Iran's feudalist customs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hussein-Ali Montazeri</span> Iranian Shia theologian and activist (1922–2009)

Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri was an Iranian Shia Islamic theologian, Islamic democracy advocate, writer and human rights activist. He was one of the leaders of the Iranian Revolution and one of the highest-ranking authorities in Shīʿite Islam. He was once the designated successor to the revolution's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, but they had a falling-out in 1989 over government policies that Montazeri claimed infringed on people's freedom and denied them their rights, especially after the 1988 mass execution of political prisoners. Montazeri spent his later years in Qom and remained politically influential in Iran, but was placed in house arrest in 1997 for questioning "the unaccountable rule exercised by the supreme leader", Ali Khamenei, who succeeded Khomeini in his stead. He was known as the most knowledgeable senior Islamic scholar in Iran and a grand marja of Shia Islam. Ayatollah Montazeri was said to be one of Khamenei's teachers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mir-Hossein Mousavi</span> Iranian reformist politician and architect (born 1942)

Mir-Hossein Mousavi Khameneh is an Iranian reformist politician, artist and architect who served as the 49th and last Prime Minister of Iran from 1981 to 1989. He was a reformist candidate for the 2009 presidential election and eventually the leader of the opposition in the post-election unrest. Mousavi served as the president of the Iranian Academy of Arts until 2009, when conservative authorities removed him. Although Mousavi had always considered himself a reformist and believed in promoting change within the 1979 Revolution constitution, on 3 Feb 2023, in response to the violent suppression of Iranians by Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, he announced opposition to the Islamic Republic constitution and asked for a widespread referendum to fully change the constitution and make a fundamental change in Iran's political system.

Throughout history, women in Iran have played numerous roles, and contributed in many ways, to Iranian society. Historically, tradition maintained that women be confined to their homes to manage the household and raise children. During the Pahlavi era, there was a drastic social change towards women's desegregation such as ban of the veil, right to vote, right to education, equal salaries for men and women, and the right to hold public office. Women were active participants in the Islamic Revolution. Iran's constitution, adopted after the Islamic Revolution in 1979, proclaims equality for men and women under Article 20, while mandating legal code adhering to Sharia law. Article 21 of the constitution as well as a few parliament-passed laws give women rights such as being allowed to drive, hold public office, and attend university but not wearing a veil in public can be punished by law; and when in public, all hair and skin except the face and hands must be covered. However, this is often not enforced; notably in recent years, Iranian women have started a number of groups to rebel against the government's oppressive policies and reclaim their independence and rights.

Though the American middle class does not have a definitive definition, contemporary social scientists have put forward several ostensibly congruent theories on it. Depending on the class model used, the middle class constitutes anywhere from 25% to 75% of households.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the Islamic Republic of Iran</span> History of Iran after the 1979 revolution

One of the most dramatic changes in government in Iran's history was seen with the 1979 Iranian Revolution where Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown and replaced by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The authoritarian monarchy was replaced by a long-lasting Shiite Islamic republic based on the principle of guardianship of Islamic jurists,, where Shiite jurists serve as head of state and in many powerful governmental roles. A pro-Western, pro-American foreign policy was exchanged for one of "neither east nor west", said to rest on the three "pillars" of mandatory veil (hijab) for women, and opposition to the United States and Israel. A rapidly modernizing capitalist economy was replaced by a populist and Islamic economy and culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social structure of China</span>

The social structure of China has an expansive history which begins from the feudal society of Imperial China to the contemporary era. There was a Chinese nobility, beginning with the Zhou dynasty. However, after the Song dynasty, the powerful government offices were not hereditary. Instead, they were selected through the imperial examination system, of written examinations based on Confucian thought, thereby undermining the power of the hereditary aristocracy.

According to the Fourth Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2005–2010), the Privatization Organization of Iran affiliated with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance is in charge of setting prices and ceding shares to the general public and on the Tehran Stock Exchange. The privatization effort is primarily backed by reformist members of the Iranian government and society who hope that privatization can bring about economic and social change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Income inequality in the United States</span>

Income inequality has fluctuated considerably in the United States since measurements began around 1915, moving in an arc between peaks in the 1920s and 2000s, with a 30-year period of relatively lower inequality between 1950 and 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social inequality</span> Uneven distribution of resources in a society

Social inequality occurs when resources within a society are distributed unevenly, often as a result of inequitable allocation practices that create distinct unequal patterns based on socially defined categories of people. Differences in accessing social goods within society are influenced by factors like power, religion, kinship, prestige, race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, and class. Social inequality usually implies the lack of equality of outcome, but may alternatively be conceptualized as a lack of equality in access to opportunity.

Human capital flight from Iran has been a significant phenomenon since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Iran had a substantial drain of highly skilled and educated individuals in the early 1990s. More than 150,000 Iranians left the Islamic Republic every year in the early 1990s, and an estimated 25 percent of all Iranians with post-secondary education then lived abroad in OECD-standard developed countries. A 2009 IMF report indicated that Iran tops the list of countries that are losing their academic elite, with a loss of 150,000 to 180,000 specialists—roughly equivalent to a capital loss of US$50 billion. In addition, the political crackdown following the 2009 Iranian election protests is said to have created a "spreading refugee exodus" of Iranian intelligentsia. It has also been reported that the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States is running a covert operation code-named "Braindrain Project" with the aim of luring away nuclear-oriented Iranian talent, thus undermining Iran's nuclear program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Subsidies in Iran</span> Government finance to reduce prices in Iran

The economy of Iran includes a lot of subsidies. Food items, such as flour and cooking oil, are subsidized, along with fuels such as gasoline. However cutting subsidies can cause civil unrest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corruption in Iran</span> Institutional corruption in the country

Corruption is a serious problem in Iran, being widespread, mostly in the government. Reformists and conservatives alike – routinely criticize corruption in the government.]

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bazaari</span> Merchant class and workers of bazaars in Iran

Bazaari is the merchant class and workers of bazaars, the traditional marketplaces of Iran. Bazaari are involved in "petty trade of a traditional, or nearly traditional, kind, centered on the bazaar and its Islamic culture". They have been described as "the class of people who helped make the 1979 Iranian Revolution".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">We are the 99%</span> Political slogan

We are the 99% is a political slogan widely used and coined during the 2011 Occupy movement. The phrase directly refers to the income and wealth inequality in the United States, with a concentration of wealth among the top-earning 1%. It reflects the understanding that "the 99%" are paying the price for the mistakes of a tiny minority within the upper class.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Class conflict</span> Concept in political and social science

In political science, the term class conflict, or class struggle, refers to the political tension and economic antagonism that exist among the social classes of society, because of socioeconomic competition for resources among the social classes, between the rich and the poor. In the political and economic philosophies of Karl Marx and Mikhail Bakunin, class struggle is a central tenet and a practical means for effecting radical sociopolitical changes for the social majority, the working class. It is a central concept within conflict theories of sociology and political philosophy.

References

  1. ↑ "Iran's economy 50 years after the Islamic Revolution". Brookings Institution. March 14, 2019. Archived from the original on June 22, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
  2. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-03-14. Retrieved 2016-06-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. 1 2 Iranians to snap up property here!. CNBC International, March 16, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Iran, a country study, area handbook series Archived 2015-06-22 at the Wayback Machine PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  5. ↑ Ten Million Iranians Under "Absolute Poverty Line" Archived 2012-01-05 at the Wayback Machine . Radio Zamaneh, May 29, 2010. Retrieved May 28, 2010.
  6. ↑ Iran Between Two Revolutions by Ervand Abrahamian, (Princeton University Press, 1982) p.432-435
  7. ↑ Ahmadinejad slams corrupt hoarders of wealth: "The Iranian 1%" Archived 2019-04-11 at the Wayback Machine . Radio Zamaneh, December 15, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  8. ↑ Central bank: Income equality improved in Iran Archived 2015-12-08 at the Wayback Machine . Tehran Times, May 1, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Human Development Report 2014 – "Sustaining Human Progress: Reducing Vulnerabilities and Building Resilience"". HDRO (Human Development Report Office) United Nations Development Programme. January 2014. Archived from the original on 27 July 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  10. ↑ http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf/CS_Iran.pdf Archived 2015-06-22 at the Wayback Machine PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  11. ↑ "How will the US nuclear deal pullout affect Iran's economy?". Archived from the original on 2018-08-01. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
  12. ↑ Vahdat, Farzin (9 December 2014). "The two faces of modernity in Iran - analysis". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  13. ↑ "IIM-AprMay16.pdf" (PDF). TurquoisePartners.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 March 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  14. 1 2 Barnato, Katy (16 March 2016). "Iran to splash up to $8B on global property: Study". CNBC.com. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  15. ↑ "Ahmadinejad slams corrupt hoarders of wealth: "The Iranian 1%". Radio Zamaneh . December 15, 2012. Archived from the original on April 11, 2019. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Ten Million Iranians Under "Absolute Poverty Line"". www.Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 5 January 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  17. ↑ "Ten Million Iranians Under "Absolute Poverty Line"". www.Payvand.com. May 2010. Archived from the original on 5 January 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  18. ↑ "Poverty spikes in Iran as prices for essential goods rise - Al-Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East". 17 November 2020.
  19. ↑ "Tehran Times". April 2007. Retrieved August 27, 2010.[ dead link ]
  20. ↑ "Women now comprise one-third of homeless Iranians". www.Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  21. ↑ "Streets of Tehran teem with children". BaltimoreSun.com. 22 April 2007. Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.