Iran’s regime is using threats, arrests and pay rises to silence workers

a general strike are all over Iranian social media. It is a nod to history. When oil workers went on strike in October 1978, Iranian oil output fell by two-thirds and the shah’s regime struggled to pay its bills. Subsequent general strikes brought the country to a standstill. The next year the monarchy was overthrown.Protesters hope to harness similar energy this year, to oust the theocratic regime that replaced the shah all those years ago. In October, after weeks of anti-government protests across the country, staff at several oil-and-gas plants walked off the job. Workers burned tyres and blocked roads.