'Class differences'
Protests erupt in Baghdad over salary scale discrepancies
BAGHDAD – Protests calling for the adjustment of the salary scale among state employees resumed Saturday in the Alawi area of central Baghdad. Demonstrators threatened a sit-in if their demands for equitable salaries are not met.
Protesters highlighted significant pay discrepancies across various ministries and state institutions. Some employees earn as little as 350,000 IQD ($267), while others receive up to 3 million IQD ($2,293).
In late June, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani met with representatives from the Salary Adjustment Coordination Team. He assured them that the government is committed to achieving justice and supporting reforms that promote social equality, his media office reported. However, he noted that addressing these disparities involves revisiting over 34 laws, decisions, and amendments related to stipends and their specifics.
Last year, a source close to Al-Sudani told 964media that increasing salaries for lower-grade employees by 150%, as proposed in a law submitted to parliament, presents a ‘financial challenge’. The only viable solution, said the source, is to fund these increases involves cutting the substantial salaries of high-ranking officials and special grades.
“The need for additional financial allocations depends on whether we reduce higher-grade salaries to increase lower-grade allocations,” the source explained. “Reducing top salaries could lessen the financial impact, but maintaining high salaries while increasing lower grades will create a difficult financial predicament.”
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