Critical Collective Bargaining Warning to the Government from United Public-Is: "The Fate of Millions Cannot Be Fit into 4 Days!"

ANKARA - The United Public-Is Confederation has once again brought the problems of millions of public laborers and pensioners to the agenda with the harsh statements it made before the 8th Term Collective Bargaining Process. The confederation clearly declared that it will never allow the sweat of public laborers to be sold for pennies at the collective bargaining table in this process where the purchasing power of public laborers is decreasing day by day. United Kamu-İş emphasized that the fact that the government's offer has not yet been announced and that the entire negotiation process has been compressed into 4 days raises concerns that the process will be a fait accompli.

Moral Issues, Not Just Salary, Should Also Be on the Table

United Kamu-İş stated that the only problem of public laborers is not only the declining purchasing power, but also the moral problems such as mobbing, pressure, arbitrary investigations by unqualified managers and interview processes focused on granting cadres to cronies must be solved as soon as possible. The confederation emphasized that it is vital that the commissions of the service branches operating before the collective agreement address these moral problems. United Public Workers' Union addressed the Public Employers' Committee and stated that it should not ignore the material and moral bottleneck that the public laborers have fallen into and should shape its work according to this reality.

"4 Days of Negotiations Unacceptable"

The Confederation drew attention to the narrowing of the collective bargaining calendar, reminding that according to the legal process, the proposal should be submitted by August 15 and the negotiations should start on August 19. However, the fact that such an important process, which concerns millions of workers and pensioners, is compressed into a period of only 4 days, suggests that "the government is planning to once again bring the decision on the wages and rights of public workers to a fait accompli." He expressed concern that this narrow timetable would lead to unions and public employees not being able to adequately voice their demands.

"High Inflation and the Welfare Share are Essential"

United Public Workers' Union emphasized that the high inflation climate in the country and the day by day declining purchasing power of public workers must be taken into account in the negotiations. He stated that the Public Employer's Committee is obliged to report these facts and make an appropriate offer. He argued that concrete steps should be taken to ensure that public laborers are not crushed by high inflation, that they receive the welfare share they deserve, and that the material and moral value of working in the state should be raised again.

"We Will Follow, We Will Win!"

United Public Workers Confederation emphasized at the end of its statement that they will follow the collective bargaining process until the end and that they will never give up pursuing the material and moral rights of public laborers. The statement concluded with the slogan "We are the producers, we are many! And we will win!" slogan. These statements once again demonstrated the confederation's determined stance to defend the rights of public employees.