Patterns of Economic Action Among Daily Wage Construction Workers in Mashhad in Confronting Economic Crises

Noghani Dokht Bahmani, Mohsen; Panjtani, Seyed Mahdi

doi:10.22054/rjsw.2026.80242.760

Patterns of Economic Action Among Daily Wage Construction Workers in Mashhad in Confronting Economic Crises

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Mohsen Noghani Dokht Bahmani ¹

Seyed Mahdi Panjtani ²

¹ Department of Social Science, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

² PhD Candidate Sociology and Economy Development, Department of Social Science, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

https://doi.org/10.22054/rjsw.2026.80242.760

Abstract

The chronic economic crisis in recent years, by weakening purchasing power and increasing livelihood insecurity, has forced lower social groups to redefine their means of securing daily life. Among these, daily-wage construction workers, due to job instability, low wages, and weak institutional support, are more exposed to the consequences of this crisis than other groups. The aim of this study is to identify and analyze the patterns of economic action adopted by construction workers in response to the ongoing economic crisis. This research employs a qualitative approach using grounded theory methodology. The field of study consisted of daily-wage construction workers active in the city of Mashhad in 2021 (Iranian year 1400). Through purposive sampling based on theoretical saturation, 14 workers were selected and studied using in-depth narrative interviews. The findings indicate that in the face of the economic crisis, construction workers employ strategies such as forcibly reducing their level of needs, shifting consumption patterns toward essentials, utilizing limited savings, and selling durable assets. Although these actions enable survival in the short term, in the long run they lead to the erosion of economic security, the weakening of support networks, a decline in quality of life, reduced satisfaction, and an increased sense of frustration. The persistence of this situation lays the groundwork for the reproduction and deepening of poverty among daily-wage construction workers.

Keywords

Construction workers

economic crisis

economic action

grounded theory

coping strategies

Subjects