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Azin Haghighi

© Hamed Nazari

Azin Haghighi, b. 1986, Tabriz, Iran.

Haghighi’s father is a photographer so he learned how to use a camera and take pictures at the age of 16. He has an associate degree in journalism and has been working as a photojournalist since 2008. He worked for Mehr, Fars, and other news agencies in Iran and has been working as a freelance photographer since 2014.
[Website]

One of the workers of the Tazareh mine (Semnan province-Iran) is changing his clothes at the beginning of the working day. The design of this mine’s changing room dates back to the WWII era and was designed by Germans. 29/04/2014
The driver of the transportation sector at Jowzchal mine transports miners with his vehicle. 9/5/2016
After finishing his shift, one of the miners in the Jowzchal coal mine in Golestan Province, gets back to the coal camp. Because of the wild animals that live in the area, all the miners always turn on their headlights so that the other workers can see them. The working conditions of the miners in Iran are very difficult and the wages are low. 10/05/2016

Burned Fuels
After the lifting of sanctions against Iran, there are still problems in the country. The decision to privatize the coal industry and import from foreign countries such as China and Australia has affected the workers’ livelihood. The import of coal caused the saturation of iron melting furnaces and the purchase of coal from domestic mines has been less than in the past. Workers are a big caste in Iran. They face many problems because of low wages and hard life. Because of the lack of jobs and the unemployment crisis in Iran, a big part of the population s trying to work in labour sectors. Workers’ protests were suppressed with unbelievable harshness and some of them became news headlines and affected the feelings of the society. The laborers who work in coal mines belong to several workshop teams (transportation, reparation, and service teams) that work in these mines. The workers of the extraction section do the most difficult part of the mining work. Their monthly wage is 300Dollars for 5 hours of work underground in shifts.

One of the Jowzchal miners is waiting in protest for his colleagues to come back and resume work in the tunnel with him. Iran’s government is against Workers’ protest photography, especially those of the coal miners. 9/5/2016
Workers at Bornaki mine (Semnan-Iran province) are waiting for transport vehicles to take them to the changing room after a long, hard day’s work. 4/29/2014
Workers on the night shift in Tazare (Semnan-Iran province) are taken to the changing room by transport vehicles. The Tazare mine is the only one that provides transport vehicles for its workers. 29/04/2014
Miners dig deep in the mountains and work in dark, narrow passages where the danger of toxic gases and cave-ins is always present. A very strenuous and dangerous workplace. 14/05/2016
Miners on the night shift at the Kalat-e-Shargh mine (in the east of Golestan province in Iran) are walking from the foot of a mountain to their changing rooms due to lack of transport. 5/2014/2016
A miner at the Kalat-e-Shargh mine (in eastern Golestan province, Iran) is taking a shower after a long day of work in the coal mine. As there is no light in the shower room, they use each other’s headlights to shower. 14/05/2016
A coal miner in the Kalariz mine takes off his helmet. He works four days a week in the mine. His home is about 150 km away from there. 22/05/2014
A teenage miner at the Kalat mine (eastern Golestan province, Iran). He is 17 years old and works in the mining (extraction) department of the mine. “Going inside the mine is by our will, but coming out is by God’s will,” he says. 14/05/2016
The driver of the Jowzchal mine (Golestan province, Iran) is showing a photo of a miner who died in an explosion in the mine. 09/05/2016

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