Harsh Statement by Ali Yalçın, President of Memur-Sen: "The Bill of Inflation is Again Cut to Civil Servants and Retirees"

ANKARA - Ali Yalçın, President of Memur-Sen (Civil Servants' Union), held a press conference on the process of the Public Officials Arbitration Board after the 8th Term Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations ended in a deadlock. Yalçın stated that the bill of the economic crisis is being billed to public employees and that the Ministry of Finance has displayed an attitude that ignores civil servants and pensioners in this process.

Speaking at the meeting, Yalçın said that as Memur-Sen, they came to the table with fair and reasonable offers that would ensure fairness in income distribution. However, he said that the Public Employers' Committee came up with inadequate offers that ignored civil servants and pensioners and did not consider them worth negotiating with. Emphasizing that Memur-Sen has carried out a determined and transparent struggle against these proposals, Yalçın stated that throughout the process, they have tried to make their voices heard with actions such as press statements in 81 provinces of Turkey, "Memur ve Emekli Nöbette" tents, social media activities, protests in front of the Ministry of Finance and a rally of 25 thousand people.

Compromised Articles and Withdrawal Decision

General President Yalçın announced that as a result of this determined struggle, a total of 356 articles were negotiated, 288 in 10 service branches and 68 in the general section. However, he stated that no consensus could be reached on the most critical demands such as proportional increase, welfare share, base salary increase, additional degrees and rent assistance.

Memur-Sen did not apply to the Arbitration Board after the bargaining process ended in a deadlock, but then made a strategic decision to send a member to the board. Yalçın explained the reasoning behind this decision by saying, "We could not leave the 58 gains in the minutes of the meeting in a vacuum." Memur-Sen emphasized that due to legal deficiencies, even the compromised clauses did not turn into decisions and therefore they had to go to the Arbitration Board to protect their gains.

Harsh Criticism of the Referee Board: "Acts as a Notary"

Yalçın claimed that the Arbitration Board, instead of making a fair decision, acted with the suggestions of the Ministry of Finance and acted like the "Public Employer's arbitration board". He said that the board did not show the will to make a fair decision and threw the authority to the economy management. Yalçın said, "It has been proven that the referee did not show the will to produce a fair decision, on the contrary, he acted with the suggestions of the Finance management."

Stating that Employers' Union withdrew from the Arbitration Board in order not to give legitimacy to this picture, Yalçın said that in this way, they both protected the gains and did not become a partner in the Arbitration structure, which "acts as a notary."

"Our Struggle Will Continue Uninterrupted"

Memur-Sen President accused the Ministry of Finance of blaming the inflation on civil servants and undermining labor peace. He said that the wage gap between employees in different statuses doing the same job has widened and civil servants and pensioners are condemned below the poverty line.

Yalçın emphasized that even though the Collective Bargaining process is over, their struggle will continue uninterruptedly. Pointing out the inadequacy of the current union law, he stated that a new union law in accordance with ILO norms should be implemented as soon as possible. Yalçın stated that they will continue their struggle for the change of the public personnel system and union law, saying "Strong civil servant means strong state, strong state means strong Turkey."