335 citizens express support for Migros warehouse workers' resistance

* Photo: DGD-SEN - Twitter

Click to read the article in Turkish

Amid the protests of workers at the warehouse of Migros, one of the largest supermarket chains in Turkey, 335 writers, scientists, academics, politicians, deputies, journalists, representatives from democratic organizations and activists have expressed their support for the resistance.

"We side by the resisting Migros workers," say the 335 citizens in their joint statement. Their statement reads as follows:

"In the face of Migros Esenyurt warehouse workers who have been objecting to the wage increases of misery for daily bread and a humane life, the boss has responded by having the police storm the warehouse and by dismissing 300 workers. Like the laborers all across the country, Migros warehouse workers are still resisting the slavery, wage increases of misery, exploitation and inequality that are desired to be imposed on them.

"In a country where the vast majority cannot meet their basic needs, one can talk about neither being a society nor staying human or democratic rights and freedoms. We support the rightful resistance of Migros warehouse workers and we join voices with the women laborers of Migros who have made a call for boycotting Migros markets."

Migros workers' resistance

Protesting in the face of an 8-percent pay rise, 257 workers of the Migros Depo, the warehouse of Turkey's one of the largest supermarket chains, have been dismissed. The dismissed workers are also the members of the Warehouse, Port, Dock and Maritime Workers Union (DGD-SEN).

Sharing the news with a message on its social media account on February 9, 2022, the DGD-SEN briefly said, "Today, our fellow workers who were shown to be on administrative leave and were inside the warehouse have been dismissed because of solidarizing with our fellow dismissed workers at the door. Migros has dismissed our 257 fellow workers."

Releasing a statement on February 11, Migros admitted the dismissal of 257 resisting workers from the Migros Depo.

Halting work in protest, the workers of the Migros Depo were waiting inside the warehouse in İstanbul's Esenyurt as part of their strike action the other night when the police stormed the warehouse and detained three executives of the DGD-SEN and over 150 workers. The detained people were released from the Kıraç Police Station later in the day.

Workers' requests

Workers of Migros demand that their net hourly wages be increased by 4 TRY, the payment of premiums be legally guaranteed and the necessary measures be taken for labor health and safety.

Who owns Migros?

One of the largest supermarket chains of Turkey, Migros Inc. belongs to the Anadolu Group. With Tuncay Özilhan as the Head of the Executive Board, Migros' firm value increased by over 75 percent in2020.

Of the companies of the group open to the public, Adel Kalemcilik (ADEL), Anadolu Efes (AEFES), Anadolu Isuzu (ASUZU), Coca-Cola İçecek (CCOLA), Migros (MGROS) and Yazıcılar Holding (YAZIC) shares are traded at Borsa İstanbul (İstanbul Stock Exchange).

Anadolu Group has the following companies:

Migros Inc.
Macro Center
Anadolu Efes (Efes Pilsen, Bomonti)
Ramstore
CCI (Coca Cola, Fanta, Sprite, Cappy, Burn, Fuse Tea) - (Sale distribution)
Anadolu Motor, Çelik Motor
AND Gayrimenkul
Efestur

The undersigned

Abdulhakim Daş
Abdullah Demirbaş
Abdullah Köktürk
Adalet Çavdar
Adnan Gölpınarlı
Ahmet Çevik
Ahmet Dindar
Ahmet Ümit
Akın Atalay
Akın Türe
Alev Er
Ali Bilen
Ali Genç
Aliye İlay İlkay
Alper Taş
Altan Aydın Kadayıfçı
Arif Ali Cangı
Arif İsmet Yılmaz
Arzu Şimşek
Aydın Aktepe
Ayfer Tunç
Aylin Onursev
Ayşe Erdem
Ayşe Erzan
Ayşe Gözen
Ayşe Özlem İnci
Ayşe Sevin Kirikoğlu
Ayşe Sevtap Uzun
Ayşegül Devecioğlu
Aysun Höbek
Ayten Aktepe
Aziz Konukman
Bahadır Altan
Bahadırhan Kuru
Başak Yıldırım
Baskın Oran
Bayram Erzurumluoğlu
Bedahat Tosun
Bilal Kılıç
Birsen Temir Saraç
Burhan Ersan
Cafer Doğan
Can Ekinci
Celal Gümüş
Celalettin Can
Celalettin Can
Cemil Günay
Cemile Mavioğlu
Fügen Kanadıkırık
Cengiz Arın
Çetin Ali Nergis
Cevdet Akgün
Cevher Bilgin
Cevza Sevgen
Çiğdem Özbaş
Çiğdem Seçkin
Cihan Uzunçarşılı Baysal
Cihat Sevim
Deniz Mukan
Dursun Bektaş
Ece Bora
Elif Aytaç
Emek Erez
Emin Ekinci
Emine İğcioğlu
Emrah Kırımsoy
Engin Çörüşlü
Enver Akyazı
Erdoğan Aydın
Erdoğan Kahyaoğlu
Erdoğan Tanyel
Erhan Öğüt
Erkan Karakiraz
Erol Kızılelma
Ertuğrul Basmacı
Eşber Yağmurdereli
Esen Aslandoğan
Esengül Demir
Esra Ergüzeloğlu
Esra Koç
Esra Mungan
Eylem Can
Fatih Aydın
Fatih Çam
Fatma Aytaç
Fatma Çetintaş
Fatma Gök
Fatoş Ay
Fehime Korkmaz Bingöl
Ferda Koç
Ferhat Tunç
Fethiye Çetin
Füsun Oğuz
Galip Yazgan
Gaye Boralıoğlu
Gencay Gürsoy
Genco Erkal
Gül Toral
Gül Yılmaz
Gülbin Demirel
Gülcan Günay
Gülder Değirmencioğlu
Gülsüm Aytül Doğu
Gülten Yalçındere
Gülümser Koçak
Gürhan Ertür
H. Cevad Özdil
Hacer Ansal
Hakan Dilmeç
Haluk Korkmaz
Haluk Levent
Hanife Yüksel
Hasan Aydın
Hasan Durkal
Hasan Kara
Hatice Betül Çelebi
Hatice Göz
Haydar Ergülen
Hayri Kozanoğlu
Hazan Özturan
Hüsamettin Ersözlü
Hüseyin Kesen
Hüseyin Topaloğlu
Hüsnü Ertung
İbrahim Akın
İbrahim Akın
İbrahim Coşkun
İbrahim Dinç
İbrahim Tanman
Irmak Zileli
İsmet Yıldırım
İzzettin Önder
Jaklin Çelik
Juliana Gözen
Kadriye Doğan
Kazım Şaroğlu
Kenan Güngördü
Kubilay Çelik
Kubilay Kutlu
Kudret Ünal
Kuvvet Lordoğlu
Latif Şimşek
Latife Tekin
Levent Sert
Levent Tüzel
M. Nuri Doruk
M. Şemsettin Dikmen
Macit Çopur
Mahmut Konuk
Mahmut Öztürk
Mebuse Tekay
Mediha Ayhan
Meftun Yücel
Mehmet Aktaş
Mehmet Ali Coşkun
Mehmet Bozgeyik
Mehmet Fatih Kayagil
Mehmet Maden
Mehmet Necati Besler
Mehmet Özkan
Mehmet Rasgelener
Mehmet Ruhi Demiray
Melda Onur
Melek Ulagay
Mert Büyükkarabacak
Mert Sarı
Mevlüt Ülgen
Muammer Sağır
Müge Koçak
Muhsin Dalfidan
Müjdat Hoşköseoğlu
Münir Korkmaz
Murat Akbaş
Murat Çelikkan
Murathan Mungan
Musa Piroğlu
Mustafa Demirkanlı
Mustafa Durmuş
Mustafa Paçal
Mustafa Sarman
Mustafa Sönmez
Naci Akıncı
Nadir Yavuz
Nadire Mater
Nafiye Kaban
Najla Oseiran
Necmiye Alpay
Necmiye Simlioba
Nejat Taştan
Nejla Kurul
Nejla Okyay
Neşe Erdilek
Nesil Özen
Nesrin Arslan
Nesrin Ekinci
Nesrin Nas
Nesteren Davutoğlu
Nevin Aytekin
Nezahat Altınsoy
Nezir Dorak
Nihal Saban
Nihan Eren
Nil Mutluer
Nilay Etiler
Nilgün Saban
Nilgün Tuncer
Nimet Tanrıkulu
Niyazi Zorlu
Nizamettin Aktepe
Nizamettin Sevim
Nur Çakmak
Nuran Gülenç
Nuran Yazıcıoğlu
Nurdan Yılmaz
Nurhan Suerdem
Olcay Özmen
Ömer Faruk Kırnıç
Ömer Faruk Köstel
Onur Hamzaoğlu
Orhan Alkaya
Orhan Altan
Orhan Pamuk
Osman Kara
Osman Okkan
Osman Sular
Oya Akıncı
Oya Berk
Oya Ersoy
Özcan Yurdalan
Özer Ülgen
Özlem Altıok
Özlem İşbilir
Özlem Özkan
Pelin Kahiloğulları
Peral Beyaz
Perihan Koca
Rahmi Yıldırım
Ramazan Kırtaş
Rasim Erer
Rennan Gerger
Reyan Tuvi
Sabahat Yavuz
Sadun Bora
Şahika Yüksel
Saime Erkal
Sait Çetinoğlu
Şakire Şeyda Ataş
Salih Zeki Tombak
Saliha Yayla
Sami Evren
Şanar Yurdatapan
Sayma Topçu
Şebnem İşigüzel
Şebnem Köksal
Seda Berzeg
Sema Anıl
Sema Kaygusuz
Semih Bilgin
Semra Somersan
Şenay Beytas
Şenay Çöte
Şener Ekiz
Şengün Kılıç
Şentürk Gülener
Serdar Dinçer
Serdar İşsever
Serhat Karagülle
Serpil Deniz Şahin
Serpil Kemalbay
Sevgi Ayral Destek
Sevilay Avcı
Sevim Yılmaz Kırnıç
Sevtap Akdağ
Sezai Yavaş
Sezer Cömert
Sibel Özbudun
Sina Hıdır
Siren İdemen
Şirin Avcı
Suay Aksoy
Şule Sepin İçli
Süleyman Karataş
Süleyman Şadi Gür
Sultan Özcan
Süreyya Kemal Çakıroğlu
Tahsin Yeşildere
Tamer Doğan
Tarık Günersel
Tarık Kayakan
Tatyos Bebek
Tayfun Mater
Tayfun Yazıcı
Temel Demirer
Teoman Tekkökoğlu
Thomas Henzel
Tuğba Temel
Tuğrul Eryılmaz
Tülay Elçi
Tülay Taşyar
Tülin Canbolat
Ünal Soydan
Üstün Güvener
Vedat Şentöregil
Veysel Duman
Viki Çiprut
Yalçın Alaca
Yalçın Ergündoğan
Yaşar Güven
Yaşare Kılıç
Güniz Tümer
Rengin Uz
Handan Haktanır
Esin Alptuna
Asuman Kayan
Yüksel Okyay
Nezihe Bilhan
Murat Bilhan
Yasin Keskin
Yücel Tunca
Yusuf Ak
Yusuf Çakır
Zehra Arat
Zehra Şenoğuz
Zeki Murat Güneş
Zeki Yalçındere
Zekiye Kürkçüoğlu
Zeliha Altuntaş
Zeynep Akıncı
Zeynep Altıok
Zeynep Atikan Gültekin
Zeynep Kadirbeyoğlu
Zeynep Oral
Zeynep Sirer
Zeynep Tuna
Züleyha Gülüm

(TP/SD)