Labor Rights

Page 3

Union signs the labor contract, municipal workers strike further

KADIKÖY

Union signs the labor contract, municipal workers strike further

On the third day of strike at İstanbul’s Kadıköy Municipality, the Public Services Employees Union of Turkey (Genel-İş) has signed the collective labor agreement with the municipality. Workers have not recognized the decision and decided to strike further.

18 February 2021

Collective bargaining ends in a deadlock, municipal workers go on strike

Collective bargaining ends in a deadlock, municipal workers go on strike

The workers of İstanbul’s Kadıköy Municipality have gone on strike as of midnight. If a similar deadlock is reached in the collective bargaining at Ataşehir and Kartal Municipalities in İstanbul, they will also stage a strike.

16 February 2021 Hikmet Adal

Unions in Turkey, UK demand suspension of free trade deal over labor concerns

Unions in Turkey, UK demand suspension of free trade deal over labor concerns

The UK signed its first free trade agreement for the post-Brexit period with Turkey. The labor unions in both countries now demand its suspension until the government of Turkey “recognizes and respects the rights of working people and unions.”

29 January 2021

‘Turkey suffers the biggest loss of employment in its history’

DİSK CHAIR ÇERKEZOĞLU

‘Turkey suffers the biggest loss of employment in its history’

After the Minimum Wage Determination Commission determined the minimum wage as 2,825 lira in 2021, the DİSK visited the main opposition CHP and HDP, expressing the confederation's request for exempting the minimum wage from tax cuts.

28 January 2021

Workers of a solar panel factory not paid their wages, severance for over 2 years

Workers of a solar panel factory not paid their wages, severance for over 2 years

The CSUN factory, a manufacturer of solar panels, was opened in 2012 with the incentive of the ruling AKP. Six years later, its managers left Turkey and the factory was closed. Over 400 workers have not been paid their wages or severance since then.

28 January 2021 Hikmet Adal

Workers halt work at Galataport for their unpaid wages

Workers halt work at Galataport for their unpaid wages

Unable to get their wages, workers halted work at the construction site of Galataport, a controversial urban project on the Asian side of İstanbul.

26 January 2021

Healthcare workers protest their pay rise

Healthcare workers protest their pay rise

Healthcare workers have criticized the 3+3 percent pay rise to take effect in 2021: “Over the past year, natural gas prices have increased by 32 percent, electricity prices by 31 percent, legumes by 60 percent, cheese by 27 percent, eggs by 80 percent…”

15 January 2021

‘Those who don’t give me my money live in luxury’

BIMEKS WORKERS

‘Those who don’t give me my money live in luxury’

Not paid their wages and severance for years, the workers of Bimeks electronics retailer turn wherever their bosses go into a site of protest. “We are trying to exert pressure by targeting their identities known by the public,” says Celep from Umut-Sen union.

13 January 2021 Melisa Elçin Özçelikel

TurkStat says minimum wage should be 2,792 lira

TurkStat says minimum wage should be 2,792 lira

Minimum Wage Determination Commission has convened for the third time. In the meeting hosted by TÜRK-İŞ workers’ confederation, the state agency TurkStat has said that the minimum subsistence level of a worker is 2,792 lira (~366 USD).

22 December 2020

Put on unpaid leave, workers back to work after protests

Put on unpaid leave, workers back to work after protests

Put on unpaid leave by a small home appliance factory in İstanbul, six workers have returned to work. Workers have announced that the Ministry sent an inspector to the factory and all their receivables since the first day of the leave have been paid.

22 December 2020

Minimum wage negotiations in Turkey: A brief overview

Minimum wage negotiations in Turkey: A brief overview

Minimum Wage Determination Commission will convene for the third time on December 22. But what has happened in the meetings so far? What is Turkey's current minimum wage and what do unions and the opposition demand? Here is a brief summary...

21 December 2020 Selay Dalaklı

Chief physician dismissed for forcing nurses to write ‘I am an idiot’

Chief physician dismissed for forcing nurses to write ‘I am an idiot’

Antalya Directorate of Health and Health Minister Koca have announced that Dr. Alkan, the chief physician of a public hospital, has been removed from office for forcing two nurses to write “I am an idiot” for 500 times because they left their posts.

18 December 2020

Nurse forced to write ‘I am an idiot, I left my post’ for 500 times

Nurse forced to write ‘I am an idiot, I left my post’ for 500 times

The Health and Social Service Laborers’ Union (SES) has denounced the incident where a nurse working in a public hospital in Antalya was forced to write down “I am and idiot, I left my post” for 500 times as a punishment for leaving her place of duty.

17 December 2020

AtlasGlobal airline workers taken into custody

AtlasGlobal airline workers taken into custody

Unable to get their wages and severance pay since 2019, a group of AtlasGlobal airline workers had been protesting in front of the ETSTur company’s headquarters in İstanbul for six days. Nine people were taken into custody yesterday.

11 December 2020

Union secures majority in factory, boss dismisses 80 workers

Union secures majority in factory, boss dismisses 80 workers

More than 80 workers have been dismissed from the Ekmekçioğulları Metal Factory in Çorum province on the day when the United Metal Workers’ Union was granted the right to represent workers by the Ministry of Family, Labor and Social Services.

10 December 2020 Hikmet Adal

Violence against domestic workers amid pandemic

Violence against domestic workers amid pandemic

According to a report by Domestic Workers Solidarity Union, 97 percent of domestic workers have to struggle against economic violence in Turkey. 99.7 percent of women subjected to violence at home say they are also subjected to violence at work.

26 November 2020

Miners’ march to Ankara prevented, again

Miners’ march to Ankara prevented, again

Unable to get their severance pay and wages, miners from Ermenek attempted to march to Ankara in protest: Gendarmerie prevented the march, Independent Miners’ Union Chair Çetin fainted during the intervention, 30 workers have been detained.

25 November 2020

Metal workers on the way to Ankara for their right to unionize

Metal workers on the way to Ankara for their right to unionize

Dismissed without severance pay or put on unpaid leave due to their union activities and briefly detained yesterday as they wanted to march to Ankara, metal workers from three factories in Kocaeli have set off for the capital city.

25 November 2020

Promises not kept, miners back on the march to Ankara

Promises not kept, miners back on the march to Ankara

Unable to get their severance pay and wages for months, even years now, the miners from Ermenek, Karaman have once again decided to march to the capital city in protest as the authorities have not kept their promises to the workers.

25 November 2020 Hikmet Adal

Metal workers released from detention

Metal workers released from detention

Taken into custody by the police when they attempted to march from Kocaeli province to Ankara to protest metal workers’ dismissal without severance pay and forced unpaid leave, 109 people have been released from detention.

25 November 2020

Workers’ march to Ankara prevented by police: 99 people detained

Workers’ march to Ankara prevented by police: 99 people detained

Police attacked metal workers’ march from Kocaeli to the capital city. Demanding their right to unionize, workers staged a sit-in protest in front of the office of United Metal Workers’ Union. Police took the detained to the security office in municipality busses.

24 November 2020

Minister promises solution, miners stop protesting until January

Minister promises solution, miners stop protesting until January

After Minister of Interior Soylu promised a solution for their problems and demands, miners from Soma have decided to end their protest until January 15. As for the miners of Ermenek, they are waiting for the meeting with the governor's office today.

18 November 2020

COVID-19 in Turkey: At least 368 workers died in 8 months

HEALTH AND SAFETY LABOR WATCH

COVID-19 in Turkey: At least 368 workers died in 8 months

While 141 workers were working in healthcare, 90 workers were working in trade/office/education/cinema, 25 were working in municipal affairs, 20 in textile/leather sector, 17 in security, 15 in metal, 14 in transportation and 10 in accomodation.

16 November 2020

Artists express support for miners’ resistance: ‘We march with miners’

Artists express support for miners’ resistance: ‘We march with miners’

A group of artists have joined a social media campaign under the hashtag “#MadenciyleYürüyorum” (I am marching with the miner) in solidarity with the miners from Soma and Ermenek who have not been paid their wages and severance.

13 November 2020

‘25,716 workers lost their lives in Turkey in 18 years’

CHP MP TANRIKULU

‘25,716 workers lost their lives in Turkey in 18 years’

According to main opposition CHP MP Tanrıkulu’s “Report on Occupational Homicides in Turkey”, which covers the period when the AKP has been in power, 25 thousand 716 workers lost their lives in occupational homicides in 18 years.

13 November 2020

Miners’ march to Ankara prevented by gendarmerie again

Miners’ march to Ankara prevented by gendarmerie again

Unable to receive their wages and compensation for over a year now, miners from Ermenek in Karaman province wanted to march to the capital city of Ankara on October 12. Miners’ march has been once again prevented by the gendarmerie.

27 October 2020

Turkish Airlines to put foreign national pilots on unpaid leave

Turkish Airlines to put foreign national pilots on unpaid leave

Turkish Airlines will put its foreign national pilots on unpaid leave starting from November 1, 2020. While it is still not yet certain whether the citizens of Turkey will also be affected, the decision will be reviewed after six months.

26 October 2020

‘We don’t want a favor, but our rights; our resistance is going on’

‘We don’t want a favor, but our rights; our resistance is going on’

Not paid their wages and compensation for months, even years, miners in Soma and Ermenek are still protesting for their rights. Meanwhile, some workers resisting for their rights in Ermenek have been paid their wages.

23 October 2020

Miners’ resistance hits front page of humor magazine: ‘Courage is contagious’

Miners’ resistance hits front page of humor magazine: ‘Courage is contagious’

“Unable to call a trifling boss to account, the state will measure its strength against us, is that so? Is that so, the regiment commander,” asked one of the miners not allowed to march to Ankara. His words have hit the front page of LeMan humor magazine.

22 October 2020

Soma miners’ march to Ankara banned by governor’s office

Soma miners’ march to Ankara banned by governor’s office

“Commercial activities to be undertaken with the aim of getting economic benefits have been excluded from the ban. Thus, it is a decision that protects the employer while disregarding workers’ rights,” says Aksu from the Independent Mine Workers’ Union.

8 October 2020 Hikmet Adal

‘Workers cannot get a share from increasing productivity’

DİSK-AR REPORT

‘Workers cannot get a share from increasing productivity’

According to a report by the DİSK Confederation's Research Center, the increase in labor productivity does not lead to an increase in wages. While productivity has increased by 51.1 percent in 8 years, unit wage has increased by 14.8 percent.

Journalists' dismissal from Hürriyet in European Commission report

Journalists' dismissal from Hürriyet in European Commission report

“Turkey 2020 Report” of the European Commission has referred to the dismissal of 45 journalists from daily Hürriyet for their trade union activities. Journalists’ Union of Turkey (TGS) İstanbul Chair Banu Tuna has commented on the report for bianet.

8 October 2020 Hikmet Adal

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