These days, with the spread of poverty, new jobs have emerged in the Iranian economy. In this regard, the focus is on examining the emerging jobs caused by poverty. Initially, statistical evidence related to poverty and unemployment is mentioned from official reports. Then, some jobs and employment trends in the Iranian economy are discussed. High self-employment rate, growth of incomplete and informal employment, emergence of Instagram jobs, and the phenomenon of unemployed debtors are among the issues highlighted in this note.

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Introduction

Concerns about poverty and inequality are increasing worldwide, especially in the aftermath of COVID-19, and some even attribute internal conflicts and wars to inequality. As Emily Rong states, poverty is not only an individual problem, but also a systemic one. This means that both personal circumstances and social and judicial systems are not exempt from this issue. They can either empower the poor or perpetuate their conditions.

The policy of poverty and income distribution in international organizations dates back to 1970, when the World Bank published a major source called “Redistribution with Growth”, which emphasized that wealth distribution policies alone are not compatible with growth promotion policies, but are actually beneficial.

From an institutional perspective, contrary to the views of market supporters, a larger cake economy does not necessarily lead to improving the situation of the poor, and income distribution is a more important factor in improving economic conditions. From an institutional point of view, in explaining the issues of underdevelopment in third world countries, it can be said that the managers of these countries encourage more opportunities that are incentive for income distribution, rather than production, in order to increase production and income and expand distribution activities, which are more redistributive rather than productive activities.

Statistical evidence

A few months ago, the Deputy of Social Welfare of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare announced in the “Poverty Monitoring Report” that until last year, twenty-six million people (thirty-one percent) of the country’s population were living in absolute poverty. Based on this report, considering that the poverty line had increased by thirty-eight percent to one million and two hundred and fifty-four thousand tomans in 2020, it was expected that by the end of this year and due to the widespread spread of COVID-19 in the country and the exit of approximately two million people from the labor market, the number of people living in absolute poverty would increase from twenty-six million to approximately thirty million.

The latest report from the Statistical Center of Iran shows that the unemployment rate for the population aged fifteen and above – which makes up 8.9% of the country’s active population – has been unemployed in the fall of this year. The study of the unemployment rate for young people aged fifteen to twenty-four indicates that 23.6% of the active population in this age group has been unemployed, with this indicator being higher among women compared to men and in urban areas compared to rural areas. The study of the unemployment rate for the population aged fifteen and above and for graduates with higher education shows that 13.8% of the active population in this group has been unemployed, with this rate being higher among women compared to men and in urban areas compared to rural areas.

Incomplete employment

Based on evidence, in times of economic recession, low-wage jobs grow faster than high-income occupations. Despite a strong job market with high demand for workers, short-term, seasonal, and temporary jobs continue to increase. These low-paying and unstable jobs often do not offer benefits such as health insurance, continuous planning, or job security.

“Incomplete employment” is an index used to measure these types of jobs. According to the definitions of the Statistical Center of Iran, individuals with incomplete employment include all workers who were present at work or temporarily absent from work during the reference week and worked less than forty-four hours due to economic reasons such as unemployment, difficulty finding work, or working fewer hours, being in a non-working season, etc. They are also willing and available to work additional hours during the reference week.

According to the latest report from the Statistical Center of Iran, in the fall of this year, the share of incomplete employment shows that 10.6% of the employed population of the country (approximately 22.5 million people) have had incomplete employment. This index has been higher among men than women and in rural areas compared to urban areas.

Informal jobs

Another sector of employment is the informal sector, which according to information published by the Statistical Center of Iran on the employment situation in the formal and informal sectors of the Iranian economy, accounted for fifty-eight percent of employment in Iran last year, while the formal sector only accounted for forty-two percent of employment. Informal employment refers to jobs that generally lack basic support, legal protections, or job benefits (such as advance notice of dismissal, severance pay, annual or sick leave, etc.). Informal employment includes both self-employment and wage and salary employment. Family workers without pay can also fall into this category. A large portion of informal employment is in the informal sector of the economy.

In many countries around the world, the expansion of the informal economy provides more opportunities for employment for women and youth. In such countries where women and youth have lower levels of education and skills, the growth of informal activities leads to an increase in demand for this segment of the workforce; as the informal sector requires less skilled labor due to the use of simple technology.

“Self-employment share”

According to the institutionalist perspective, the poorer a country is, the higher percentage of its people are self-employed; however, supporters of neoclassical economics believe that self-employment is equivalent to entrepreneurship and creates a balance between work and life. Atkinson and Lind, in their book “Beautifully Big,” provide examples that make this reality more believable. They point out that in 2016, about 6.4% of Americans were self-employed, while in Burundi, 89.9% of people were self-employed or engaged in family businesses. In 2016, per capita income in Burundi was $800, while in the United States it was $57,300. As a rule, wealthy areas are areas where self-employment is the lowest, and poor areas are areas with the highest self-employment. In general, with the acquisition of a larger market share by large companies and higher returns, job opportunities for employees also increase. This is why wealthier

The report from the Deputy of Entrepreneurship and Employment Development of the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare indicates that the majority of employment created in recent years has lacked insurance support and has been self-employment and small businesses. It is clear that an increase in small businesses does not necessarily mean a thriving business environment and the creation of sustainable jobs. This report emphasizes this issue and states, “These businesses (self-employment and small businesses) are not sufficiently sustainable, and in the event of a shock such as the coronavirus, a large number of employees become unemployed. Since they do not have insurance support, identifying them for assistance is difficult and this is a serious problem.” Our experience with providing facilities to businesses affected by the coronavirus is recent and tangible; many small businesses or self-employed individuals faced many difficulties in receiving these facilities.

Unemployed debtors

Unfortunately, in Iran, anyone who creates a workshop or even a small shop is considered an “entrepreneur”, but the intention of entrepreneurship is to create businesses involved with technology that have the potential for growth and expansion. This perception in Iran has led many policymakers to support the granting of small loans for job creation; support that in many cases leads to vulnerable employment or eventually turns the unemployed into indebted individuals.

“Vulnerable Employment” is defined as including self-employment and participation in family occupations. Workers in these types of jobs are likely to not have formal employment contracts and are at risk of lacking suitable working conditions, social security, and membership in a union.

In fact, it can be said that the phenomenon of “unemployed debtors” is one of the consequences of the recent decades of poverty. The implementation of various plans by previous governments to expand small and home-based businesses, in addition to wasting the country’s resources, has turned the unemployed into unemployed debtors. A report on the performance of quick-return businesses in the years 1388 and 1389 showed a deviation of sixty percent of the bank resources paid to these businesses.

Instagram businesses

A look at Iranian Instagram shows that food containers, clothes, decorative items, houseplants, and small household items are among the things that have become a source of income for approximately one million Iranians these days. The emergence of such businesses can be seen as a manifestation and a result of poverty. Studies show that Instagram alone has become a place of business for a large group of people (around one million). In addition to buying and selling goods on Instagram, there is fierce competition for content creation, increasing page followers, and the number of likes and comments; a virtual market, but a thriving one.

Summary

It is said that during the French Revolution, news was brought to Queen Marie Antoinette that the people had no bread to eat, and she replied, “Well, let them eat cake!” The current economic situation in Iran and the reaction of officials is similar to this statement.

A few days ago, one of the old journalists had put his wife’s Chinese dishes for sale on one of the second-hand goods selling websites. Another had prepared a report that people with disabilities who receive a monthly salary of 350,000 tomans from the Welfare Organization are unable to manage their lives and are forced to sell their wheelchairs for their daily affairs. Instagram pages are also filled with handmade goods, mostly sold by women. Becoming a member of Snapp or Tap30 has become a normal routine in big cities. Street vending in public spaces (such as BRT or metro) has turned these spaces into mobile shops for years. Parking attendants, fortune tellers, grave mourners, vendors, beggars to attract customers in shops, and other similar jobs have become a source of income for some these days. This is just a short list of jobs that have become normal for all of us with the spread of poverty and the decrease in people’s purchasing power; but there

Notes:

1- Albritton, Robert, Let Them Eat Junk: How Capitalism Creates Hunger and Obesity, translated by Kianoush Yasayi, Akhtaran Publishing, 2014.

2- Atkinson, Robert and Lind, Michael, “The Big Beautiful”, translated by Hamid Padash, Ali Nikoonesbat, and Bahman Khodapanah, published by Nahaadegara, 1399 (2020).

3- There is no inequality between the head and tail, Interpreter of Humanities, Issue 19, Summer 1400.

4- Summary of the results of the labor force survey project, Statistics Center of Iran, Population, Labor and Census Office, Fall 1400.

“5 million people are below the absolute poverty line”, ILNA news agency, 29 Mehr 1400.

6- “Informal economy and the role of informal employment in Iran”, Deputy of Entrepreneurship and Employment Development, Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare.