CHP's Öztürk alleges mass layoffs at TOGG factory: 'You hired them by calling it domestic and national'

It has been alleged that approximately 200 employees have been laid off at the TOGG Gemlik factory. CHP Bursa Deputy Hasan Öztürk said, "You are putting the people you hired by calling it domestic and national out on the street with the police. This is heartless."

A TOGG worker, who stated that there were numerous police officers and private security guards at the factory gate, described what they experienced as follows:

"Please make our voices heard. We were on annual leave. They called us this morning and about 200 of us were laid off. There is no valid reason. We came to this factory leaving behind our 8-10 years of severance pay, just so the country would develop and we would have a hand in it. But they are putting us out on the street. We couldn't even enter to get our belongings. They have placed 6 police patrol cars and extra security guards at the gate."

CHP'S ÖZTÜRK: "YOU ARE PUTTING THE PEOPLE YOU HIRED BY CALLING IT DOMESTIC AND NATIONAL OUT ON THE STREET"

Making a statement on the matter, CHP Bursa Deputy Hasan Öztürk stated that he would bring the layoffs at TOGG to the agenda of the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM). Stating that what is happening is not only an economic crisis but also a crisis of conscience, Öztürk used the following expressions:

"You are now putting the people you hired by calling it domestic and national out on the street with the police. They are not even allowed to enter the factory. The treatment these people, who left their severance pay behind and came to this project with hope, are receiving is pure heartlessness. For such a new company in the automotive sector, such early layoffs and giving up on the laborers first when things get difficult is unacceptable. 

Why don't you put them on unpaid leave? Will TOGG always remain in single-shift production? Won't these difficult days pass? At the first sign of difficulty, you put the workers out on the street, and you don't even let them approach the gate. While automobile factories that have been operating in Bursa for years do not do this, the fact that TOGG executives are doing it is causing great grievances. We are waiting for an immediate explanation from the company and the relevant ministry. We will not let this matter drop."