In mid-March, Babak, a 49-year-old Iranian product designer at a tech company in Tehran, was called into his boss’s office and told that his position was being eliminated.
Iran’s government had shut down the internet two weeks earlier, at the outset of U.S.-Israeli war on the country, throwing the country’s tech industry into chaos and making Babak’s job impossible.
“Throughout my career, I have worked hard, continuously learned, and tried to grow,” said Babak, who sent voice messages to The New York Times, and asked to be identified only by his first name to avoid government reprisal. “Yet at this stage of my life, I find myself in an uncertain and ambiguous position,” he said.
Babak’s experience has become increasingly common throughout Iran as companies have instituted round after round of layoffs in recent weeks, according to interviews with businesses and employees and Iranian news reports.
For the Trump administration, Iran’s severe economic struggles are part of a strategy to pressure the country into submission. “I hope it fails,” President Trump told reporters this month, of Iran’s economy. “You know why? Because I want to win.”