TÜRK-İŞ demands justice and tax reform in collective bargaining agreements

The TÜRK-İŞ Presidential Board met under the chairmanship of President Ergün Atalay. The meeting emphasized demands for addressing wage imbalances in collective bargaining agreements and making the tax system fair. The Presidential Board called on the government to bridge the gap between inflation and price increases.

Don't leave your news choices to an algorithm - decide for yourself what you read. Add 12punto to your preferred sources!

TÜRK-İŞ demands justice and tax reform in collective bargaining agreements

The Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (TÜRK-İŞ) Presidential Board met under the chairmanship of TÜRK-İŞ President Ergün Atalay.

Current issues in working life were discussed at the meeting. The declaration published following the meeting included the decisions taken by the board.

Within the framework of the meeting, it was stated that differences in 6-month wage increases have emerged due to the different start dates of collective bargaining agreements signed under the 2023 Public Collective Bargaining Framework Agreement Protocol and due to inflation. To ensure industrial peace and prevent the disruption of wage balance, it was requested that an additional framework agreement protocol be signed to apply the 24.73 percent rate, which is applied to collective bargaining agreements starting in January, to agreements starting in other months as well.

“THIS GAP BETWEEN INFLATION AND THE PRICE INCREASES EXPERIENCED BY THE PUBLIC MUST BE BRIDGED"

The statement emphasized that the current tariff and increasing rates in the taxation of wages victimize employees, and included the following remarks:

“Due to the low starting point of tax brackets and the narrow tariff range thereafter, this situation causes a decrease in the net amount received by the worker, their purchasing power, and their welfare. This system is not fair. Those who earn less should be taxed less, and those who earn more should be taxed more. It is our demand that the tax system be reorganized in the 2025 Central Government Budget Law negotiations, taking income justice into account. This demand should be the priority agenda of the parliament. While the aforementioned raise rates have not yet been reflected in wages and salaries according to the announced inflation figures, a thirty-eight percent hike has been applied to electricity and natural gas prices. It is our demand that this gap between the announced inflation and the price increases experienced by the public be bridged as soon as possible with the necessary regulations.”

“ROADMAP WILL BE SHARED WITH THE PUBLIC"

Stating that work regarding the demands in the declaration will continue, the statement added: “In this context, TÜRK-İŞ Vice Presidents will visit the regions next week to hold joint meetings with all branch presidents and provincial representatives in the regions and provinces, and the action plan and roadmap to be determined will be shared with the public.”

News Source: 12punto