Forced to resign for being pregnant: Demirören protested

Recently, Betül Altundal, a female worker employed in the finance department of Demirören Media, was subjected to pressure and mobbing by her managers after becoming pregnant.

Company executives pressured Altundal to resign, citing her pregnancy as the reason. Altundal, who resisted the pressure to resign, was subsequently dismissed by her managers.

According to the report in Sol, the Patronların Ensesindeyiz (PE) (We Are on the Bosses' Necks) and the Women's Solidarity Committees (KDK) organized a press conference in front of Demirören Media along with the female worker to express their reaction to the events.

"I WAS A PERSON MY SUPERIORS SPOKE OF WITH PRAISE UNTIL THE NEWS OF THE CHILD"

Speaking at the press conference, Betül Altundal said, "I was a person my superiors spoke of with praise until the news of the child. After I became pregnant, my resignation was requested, and I was offered two months' salary in return."

Drawing attention to the struggle and the problems women face in their workplaces, Altundal stated, "I am here because I am against women being forced to give up their careers to become mothers. I believe that women can exist in every field. And I want no other woman in this workplace to experience what I have gone through. My hope is to reach other women and show them that they are not alone in their rightful struggle."

"THEY MADE ME WORK DAY AND NIGHT AND WAITED UNTIL THE BUDGET PERIOD WAS OVER"

Highlights from Altundal's speech are as follows:

"On January 15, I was called by my director and learned that my pregnancy was a problem for him. He asked for my resignation and offered me two months' salary in return. When I told him this was not a valid reason for termination, he said to me, 'You shouldn't have had unprotected sex.'

My director, who initially said he was very happy for the child, believed that my child was planned and that this situation was a 'goal scored against him,' so he made me work day and night and waited until the budget period was over. My dear director, who even arranged for the employee to replace me, did not say anything to me during this process.

Do you know what the plan is? The plan is to try to fire someone who is pregnant 1 day before her 6th month is completed so that she cannot file a lawsuit. The plan is to say to someone who will likely not be able to find a job for 9 months, 'take two months' salary and go.' It is to make rude comments about people's family lives and then, when the last day comes, act as if none of this happened and talk about year-end performance.

I am addressing Meltem Demirören from here; as someone who has worked for the Demirören Group for years, is this what I deserve?"

"NO OTHER WOMAN SHOULD EXPERIENCE WHAT I HAVE GONE THROUGH"

I am here because I am against women being forced to give up their careers to become mothers. I believe that women can exist in every field. And I want no other woman in this workplace to experience what I have gone through.

Yes, I am experiencing gender inequality, and all women are experiencing it. But I think that regardless of gender, everyone, men and women, should take a stand. This is a struggle between being human and not. I am not alone in this struggle. I am fighting together with the Women's Solidarity Committees and the Patronların Ensesindeyiz Network. My hope is to reach other women and show them that they are not alone in their rightful struggle.”

KDK: GET OFF WOMEN'S BACKS ALREADY

Speaking on behalf of the Women's Solidarity Committees (KDK), Serap Emir said, "Today, as the Women's Solidarity Committees and the Patronların Ensesindeyiz Network, we are here to support the struggle of our friend who was fired by Demirören Holding because she became pregnant."

"Erdoğan orders 3 children, we get pregnant, and bosses fire us. They want us to sit at home, look after children, and then when we can't make ends meet, settle for the precariousness, poverty, and violence that the bosses deem fit for us. But we do not settle. Here we are!" said Emir, continuing her words:

"We are here because her struggle is the struggle of all of us, men and women... We are here because millions of female workers are subjected to similar bullying and rights violations in different workplaces every day, and are exposed to mobbing and violence. They start putting pressure on us women from the job interviews... Are you thinking of having children? Do you have marriage plans? Whether we marry or not, whether we have children or not, only we decide that. But no, if they could, they would plan every moment of ours... Why? Because they want us to have no other occupation outside of work, to work 12 hours a day, and if that's not enough, to work overtime! As long as the bosses' profits don't fall... And we say, let your profits and your wealth go to hell!"

Not a day goes by that they don't talk about us... From the President to the Head of Religious Affairs, from the boss to the holding, to the sect... Enough is enough! Stop trying to implement your dirty projects through us! Get off women's backs already!

But will they get off... They do it to weaken us, to make us work cheaply for the bosses. Their politicians will go up to the podiums every day and pontificate about women so that the bosses can employ us for pennies, precariously, and without insurance... Sect sheiks and religious merchants will darken women's lives so that the bosses can fire women the moment they get into a tight spot...

"WE WANT TO LIVE HUMANELY"

They have set up a system, and we, the working women, are the ones crushed under it the most. No daycare, no equal pay for equal work, overtime, no weekly holidays... What is there? Firing when pregnant, unpaid wages, bullying, mobbing. And on November 25ths and March 8ths, they have one red carnation for each of us. We don't want your carnations, we want bread. We want to feed ourselves, we want to be sure of our children's future and our own future. We want to live humanely. We are fighting for this.

Finally, we declare from here: Everyone knows Demirören's sycophancy, but we will make everyone aware of their hostility toward working women! This is not their first case either. In 2020, security guard Zeynep Tüzer was fired for dirtying the carpet with her shoes. In 2022, journalist Zeynep Irmak Öcal was fired because she had a child. Now, our friend Betül has been fired because she became pregnant. Did Demirören Holding boss Meltem Demirören look at these women's tears when she fired them? Yes, Meltem Demirören is a woman... But she is a boss and on the side of her class... And we, as the Women's Solidarity Committees, are on the side of our class... As working women, we are on the side of the working class. Today we are in front of Demirören, tomorrow, wherever any of our fellow working women are subjected to a violation of rights, we will be there.

Addressing the workers at Demirören, Emir ended her words as follows:

"We know today is the day for salary increases at Demirören... We also know that it is highly likely that the raise Demirören will give will fall short of the employees' demands. Our call to the communication workers at Demirören Media is: Do not let Demirören, who does not pay the loan debt it took from Ziraat, condemn you to credit cards. We are with you against every penny they steal from your pocket, we are on Demirören's neck.

As the Women's Solidarity Committees and Patronların Ensesindeyiz, we say, 'Don't wait for your turn to come, organize!' Organize for secularism, for equality, to defend your rights in the workplace! Organize to change the fate imposed on you. We are organizing! We are organizing to end our loneliness! We are organizing to hold them accountable for the violence, exploitation, and poverty inflicted on working women in this country!"

PE: DEMİRÖREN IS A MEDIA BOSS COMPANY WITH A QUITE HEAVY RECORD

Speaking at the press conference on behalf of Patronların Ensesindeyiz, Merve Güzey said, "We will stand by our friend Betül's struggle until the end. We will hold them accountable for this discrimination and injustice together. This is not just her story, but also the struggle of all working women."

Highlights from Güzey's speech are as follows:

"Demirören is a media boss company with a quite heavy record, known in the past for rights violations against workers, labor exploitation, and boss violence.

We will fight so that no other worker friend of ours experiences what our friend Betül experienced. This is not just her story, but also the struggle of all working women. Not saying stop to what is happening here today, not showing our reaction to Demirören, means that tomorrow many of our fellow workers will have their rights shamelessly violated by bosses.

Today, we came together as the Women's Solidarity Committees and Patronların Ensesindeyiz. We say it once again from here. The Demirören Media boss should be afraid because the struggle is just beginning for us. We will continue to be on the neck of the labor-thief Demirören Media to hold them accountable for Betül and all our other fellow workers."

News Source: 12punto