HAK-İŞ signals 'discussions will accelerate' regarding minimum wage

HAK-İŞ organized an iftar program to which members of the press were invited. Speaking at the program, which was attended by representatives of many media organizations, HAK-İŞ Chairman Mahmut Arslan made statements regarding working life and the country's agenda.

In his speech, Arslan stated that the HAK-İŞ Confederation has taken a clear stance against the occupation of Palestine in the events occurring between Israel and Palestine.

Arslan said, "HAK-İŞ's solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters will continue until an independent Palestinian State with Jerusalem as its capital is established."

"15 MILLION LIRA IN AID COLLECTED"

Stating that defending the fundamental rights of people living in Gaza, especially the right to life, is a historical and humanitarian responsibility, Arslan noted that they gathered as a Confederation in an extraordinary session, especially after the events of October 7. Expressing that they created awareness through various rallies in Turkey and launched aid campaigns, Arslan stated, "We launched an aid campaign with our Confederation's Board of Directors and our unions, and in the first stage, we created a resource of approximately 15 million."

Stating that they made an agreement under the leadership of the Turkish Red Crescent on the condition that the aid be delivered directly to Gaza, Arslan noted that they transferred a resource of 5 million liras to Gaza as aid in the first stage. Reminding that despite all of Turkey's initiatives, a ceasefire could not be achieved in Palestine, Arslan said, "Turkey has reacted seriously against Israel's attacks since the first day in this regard. 

We want more support from our government on this issue. More can be done for Palestine. We want civil society to take more initiative and provide support. Because, as in many countries, the eyes of the innocent and the victims in Gaza are on Turkey. They are expecting something from Turkey. We are working with all our might to meet those expectations. Palestine is one of our fundamental issues. We want a ceasefire to be achieved as soon as possible. We will continue to fight for this and defend it," he said.

"WE ARE NOT AGAINST FOREIGN WORKERS, BUT AGAINST ILLEGALLY EMPLOYED WORKERS"

Regarding the presence of foreign workers in Turkey, Arslan assessed, "When we say 'we are against foreign workers,' we have nearly 5 million guests in our country. Some of them fled the war and came to our country, and some of them are people who came to our country and took refuge through other means. In principle, we have no objection to the employment of Syrian workers. We want them to be employed in accordance with legal regulations. Let people be employed by obtaining the necessary work permits. We also have a regulation on this subject that says 'it will not exceed 10 percent.' Our objection is to the employment of illegal workers who do not comply with the laws."

"MINIMUM WAGE DISCUSSIONS WILL ACCELERATE"

Speaking about the minimum wage determined at the beginning of the year being 'set only once for 2024', Arslan noted that the rise in inflation should be looked at for an interim raise in the minimum wage. Arslan said, "If this rise in inflation and this increase in prices occur, these discussions will naturally accelerate. When we reach July, the picture will be before us. 

Depending on the conditions at that time, the matter needs to be discussed with both the Minister and other actors in the public eye. Of course, since we are not a party to the Minimum Wage Determination Commission, the members of the Minimum Wage Determination Commission, which are the workers, employers, and the government, need to develop a common stance on this issue.

The key point here is this; The Ministry of Labor and Social Security calls the Minimum Wage Determination Commission to a meeting. Therefore, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security will be the determining factor here. We will also put forward our own thoughts according to the Ministry's stance at that time," he said.

News Source: İHA