Sulaymaniyah public sector workers strike over unpaid salaries

SULAYMANIYAH – Employees of the Sulaymaniyah Municipality and the Water Directorate have initiated a work strike due to the delayed payment of their July salaries, a situation that may impact educational processes in the governorate next year. The Sulaymaniyah Municipality workers have ceased duties for two days, citing severe impacts on their livelihoods due to prolonged salary delays.

Similarly, staff at the Sulaimaniyah Water Directorate have also stopped working, emphasizing the ongoing delays as their primary grievance. With September approaching, public sector employees across the Kurdistan Region, including those in Sulaymaniyah, are still awaiting their July salaries, with August payments also pending.

The Kurdistan Regional Government’s finance ministry has denied responsibility for the delay, while the federal Ministry of Finance has yet to make a statement, exacerbating frustrations among employees. This delay follows a broader financial challenge for the KRG.

In addition to Sulaymaniyah, the notary public office staff in Kalar, Garmyan, continued their strike for a second consecutive day. Despite similar salary issues across the Kurdistan region, protests like these have not been observed in Erbil and Duhok, where political pressures have discouraged such actions.

Last academic year, similar issues caused partial paralysis in public institutions and hit the the education system in Sulaymaniyah and Halabja hard, with students attending school for only two to three months through the whole year.

The KRG Ministry of Finance reported that it submitted the June payroll to Baghdad 31 days ago, but the federal finance ministry has only authorized a fraction of the necessary funds, further complicating the financial crisis for public sector employees.