Harsh Reaction from Memur-Sen to the Government: Tens of Thousands Take to the Streets with the Slogan "Renew the Offer"

ANKARA - The public employer's low raise offer for civil servants and civil servant pensioners in the 8th Term Public Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations caused outrage among public employees. Service branches affiliated to Memur-Sen organized protests across Turkey with the slogan "Renew the Offer" against the insufficient increases proposed by the government for 2026 and 2027. Many unions gathered in front of their respective institutions and shouted that they were waiting for a fair offer that would include a welfare share and compensate for wages eroding in the face of high inflation.

General Reactions to the Public Employer's Proposal

The public employer's offer of 16 percent for 2026 and 8 percent for 2027, in response to Memur-Sen's demand for 88 percent for 2026 and 46 percent for 2027, raised the unions' reaction even more. Birlik Haber-Sen gathered in front of the Ankara PTT Head Office and emphasized that this offer was "unfair, unjust, unjust and unserious". Ömer Budak, President of Birlik Haber-Sen, said that the proposal "does not compensate for the real losses of the past two years, ignores pensioners and devalues labor." Budak stated that this situation does not eliminate the injustice in income distribution and the distortion in the wage balance and said, "It imposes poverty on 6 and a half million people for two more years."

Specific Requests and Criticisms by Service Line

Sağlık-Sen: Members of Sağlık-Sen gathered in front of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security to voice the problems of health workers and stated that they want an offer that includes a welfare share to compensate for past losses. Mahmut Faruk Doğan, General Secretary of Memur-Sen and President of Sağlık-Sen, said, "The proposed figures have nothing to do with the bazaar market," adding that health sector workers are ignored despite their harsh working conditions.

Bayındır Memur-Sen: Bayındır Memur-Sen protested in front of Sincan Etimesgut Land Registry Directorate and called on the Public Employer to present a new offer urgently. President Soner Can Tufanoğlu demanded that the revolving fund wages of Land Registry and Cadastre employees be increased, that all employees be given Land Registry and Cadastre compensation, and that archive officers be transferred to the technical services class. He also asked for special compensation for employees of the Ministry of Highways, AFAD and the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change.

Emekli Memur-Sen: Retired civil servants also marched to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security to make their voices heard. Ali Küçükkösen, President of Retired Civil Servant-Sen, stated that the patience of the pensioners has run out and said, "The knife has reached the bone." Küçükkösen emphasized that the ratio between the duty salary and the pension has decreased to 45 percent and that the dilyan increase, which is not reflected to the pensioners, has increased to 18,600 TL, and demanded that this injustice be eliminated.

Diyanet-Sen: Members of Diyanet-Sen gathered in front of the Ministry of Treasury and Finance and demanded an increase in overtime wages, additional payments and special service compensation for all service branch employees, especially religious officials. General President Ali Yıldız stated that the collective bargaining negotiations should not be a fait accompli and that they expect the proposals to be negotiated seriously.

Eğitim-Bir-Sen: In a demonstration in front of the Ministry of National Education, Eğitim-Bir-Sen reacted to the Public Employer's Committee's proposal that ignores education and science workers. General Secretary Talat Yavuz demanded that teachers' additional course fees be increased, the drudgery of school administrators be abolished and the problems of auxiliary services class personnel be solved. Yavuz said, "Is there a more suitable ground than the collective bargaining table for a solution to all this injustice?" and stated that the table should produce solutions.

"Wear Black to Work" Protest

Ulaştırma Memur-Sen, on the other hand, demonstrated their reaction with the "Wear Black and Come to Work!" protest across Turkey. Members of the union went to their workplaces wearing black clothes and "The Officer Wants His Right" banners to protest the low offers of the Public Employer's Committee. This action demonstrated the determination of Memur-Sen and the seriousness of the demands of the rank and file.