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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has postponed strikes in two factories of a steel manufacturer for 60 days.
The decision published in the Official Gazette today (December 13) was taken because the strikes were "of nature disruptive to national security" as per article 63 of Law No. 6356 on Unions and Collective Bargaining Agreements.
According to the article, workers cannot resume strikes after 60 days. If the parties fail to reach an agreement within that period, the Supreme Arbitration Board finalizes the agreement. If this is not done either, the union loses its collective bargaining power.
Workers of two factories of the Bekaert firm in Kocaeli, northwestern Türkiye, were going to launch the strike today.
Releasing a statement following the decision, the Birleşik Metal İş union said, "The president again made his choice in favor of the capital. The workers will not recognize this unlawful ban on the strike and will start their legal strike at 13.00, exercising the right granted by the Constitution and international laws."
Since Erdoğan's Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power in 2002, the government has postponed 19 strikes for various reasons, including protecting national security, public health, financial stability and public transportation:
(HA/VK)