Sakineh Maleki Hadak, a high school teacher in Bandar Anzali and a member of the Iranian teachers’ union movement, has been sentenced to forced retirement with a two-rank demotion, according to the final ruling issued by the clerical regime’s Administrative Court of Justice.
The decision upholds a previous verdict issued by the Ministry of Education’s Disciplinary Board for Government Employees.
The sentence was issued in response to Sakineh Maleki’s participation in peaceful protest gatherings and her active pursuit of teachers‘ professional demands. Although the Ministry of Education had earlier issued the forced retirement order, Mrs. Maleki appealed the decision.
However, on May 17, 2025, Branch 25 of the Appeals Court of the Administrative Court confirmed the initial ruling, making it final and binding.
Sakineh Maleki Hadak, born in 1974, holds a master’s degree and has 28 years’ experience of teaching in the Ministry of Education.
The regime sentences teachers to forced retirement despite the Ministry of Education having a shortage of at least 300,000 teachers. To avoid paying teachers’ salaries, the Ministry of Education refuses to officially hire thousands of qualified teachers, replacing them with teachers who are willing to work with temporary contracts which violate teachers’ employment rights.
At the same time, the salaries of official, unofficial, and temporary teachers are not paid each month, forcing them to live for months without salaries. During the past years, teachers have participated in many protests and sit-ins to demand their rights.
