Memur-Sen decides to send member to Arbitration Board: They explained the reason

In a written statement issued by Memur-Sen, it was stated: "The 8th Term Collective Bargaining process regarding general issues resulted in a deadlock due to the public employer's attitude of ignoring civil servants and retirees, and a meeting report was drawn up including the 58 articles that were agreed upon.

Although we, as Memur-Sen, did not apply to the Arbitration Board—which we have described as acting as a notary for the public employer—the public employer side applied to the Arbitrator and initiated the Arbitration process. During this process, we witnessed some segments persistently stating that Memur-Sen should not send a member to the Arbitrator and that the collective bargaining should be moved to the Parliament.

Faced with this situation, which has never occurred before, we examined the conditions that would be in favor of or against public officials in detail through consultations and evaluations we conducted by taking the relevant articles of the Law into account. At the point we have reached, the scenario that would arise if we did not provide a member to the Arbitrator—where the 58 agreed-upon articles that went before the Arbitrator would be ignored and the fate of our previous gains would be condemned to uncertainty—would be against the interests of public officials," the statement read.

Noting that the fate of the collective bargaining would be uncertain if it were to go to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, the statement continued: "Indeed, the 58 articles on which consensus was reached and recorded in the meeting report involve income items obtained for many titles, from branch managers to chiefs, from engineers to experts, and from General Administrative Services to Auxiliary Services. If the collective bargaining goes to Parliament, their fate is uncertain. Because it is clear that Parliament will not make a decision by taking all the articles in the meeting report into account. It is unknown what will be given and how much. Leaving the rights and interests of public officials to an unknown is a move that we, as Memur-Sen, do not find appropriate. Those who tell us not to send a member to the Arbitrator are segments that do not carry the responsibility we carry, do not have the burden we bear, and are unaware of the aforementioned 58 articles or act as if they are unaware. 

As the authorized union sitting in the position of responsibility, we look at the issue not with reactivity, but with reason and logic, and we act by being meticulous. We are fighting in the Board to turn the 58 articles agreed upon in the collective bargaining negotiations into gains," it was stated.

Stating that Memur-Sen will always defend the rights of public officials, the statement concluded: "We have enough trade union experience and background not to take into account the directions of segments that consciously ignore these dimensions of the issue and misinform the masses. Let no one try to teach us how to do trade unionism. Our responsibility is primarily to our members and the public officials we represent at the collective bargaining table. 

We will not allow anyone who wants to sacrifice the rights and interests of civil servants to their own political and trade union interests to drag us into the adventurism of resorting to an unknown path by leaving the path where we can achieve gains. We all know that the main source of this problem we are experiencing is the current trade union law. Without correcting the distortions of this law, neither fair bargaining nor an impartial arbitration decision is possible. What needs to be done first is the urgent enactment of a new trade union law. As Memur-Sen, we will continue to defend the rights and interests of public officials under all circumstances. Let no one expect us to choose the path that leaves the civil servant in the unknown," the statement read.

News Source: İHA