Iran sees mass redundancies from war with US and Israel

Iran has been hit by a massive wave of redundancies, both directly and indirectly, as a result of the conflict with the US and Israel.

Its Deputy Work and Social Security Minister, Gholamhossein Mohammadi, said two days ago that two million people had lost their jobs because of the war.

The widespread layoffs are one of the biggest topics of conversation among ordinary Iranians on social media. Employers and government officials euphemistically refer to it as "balancing the workforce".

The impact goes far beyond factories closed down after being hit by air strikes. It also includes other manufacturers, retailers, import and export businesses, and the digital sector.

"You can see it from the emptiness of the metro," posted one user on X. "You can see it from the abundance of parking spaces near the office," said another. "You can get it from the emptiness of the Hemmat [highway in Tehran]. My one-and-a-half hour journey took only half an hour," came another comment.

The war has also hurt consumer spending, with many people cutting back to essentials, reducing demand in sectors such as tourism, restaurants, and retailers other than grocery stores.

The Iranian authorities' decision to impose an internet blackout since the war broke out has also hit Iran's relatively thriving tech and digital sectors.

Officials say the decision to shut down the internet was taken for security reasons, suggesting it is intended to prevent surveillance, espionage and cyberattacks. It took the same step during the brutal clampdown of protests earlier this year, which was mainly aimed at restricting protesters' ability to organise and access information.

Demand for news

Back in January, Iran's Information and Communication Technology Minister, Sattar Hashemi, said that every day of internet blackout costs the economy at least 50 trillion rials ($35m; £28m; €32m).

By that count, the 52 days of internet shutdown since the start of the war have cost the Iranian economy more than $1.8bn.

The blackout has particularly hit female earners. Only one in nine working-age women in Iran was in work before the war, official data shows, and hundreds of thousands of women relied on platforms such as Instagram to connect with their customers to sell products.

And even at a time of increased demand for news due to the conflict, many media outlets have also laid off staff. This includes the Iran Labour News Agency (Ilna), which made all its journalists redundant last week and asked them to work as freelancers.

Read more here: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce84e31376zo