Trade Union Rights of Turkish Aviation Workers Under Attack

The ITF and its European arm, the ETF, have condemned an assault on the trade union rights of civil aviation workers in Turkey.

The ITF-affiliated union Hava-Ýþ, which represents workers at Turkish Airlines (THY) and THY Technical, the maintenance division of the airline, is currently involved in a struggle for collective bargaining rights at the division. Its bargaining power has been threatened by a newly forged liaison between Celik-Ýþ, a metal workers’ union and THY Technical; it is understood that Celik-Ýþ does not currently represent maintenance workers.

In a letter to Faruk Celik, Labour and Social Security Minister, the ITF and the ETF express support for Hava-Ýþ in its attempts to reach an agreement with the airline; Hava-Ýþ is the only aviation union in Turkey to have a longstanding record of representing pilots, cabin crew, ground staff, and well as maintenance workers.

ITF General Secretary David Cockroft and ETF General Secretary Eduardo Chagas told Celik: "Both ITF and ETF condemn Celik-Ýþ’ and THY’s collaboration to undermine the validity of Hava-Ýþ as the only union that represents aircraft maintenance mechanics, technicians and engineers."

They reminded the minister that as the government owns a 49 per cent stake in THY, the state itself could be perceived to be involved in attempts to undermine the trade union rights of THY Technical workers by discrediting Hava-Ýþ and its members. They also added: "To treat Hava-Ýþ in this way directly contradicts the relevant International Labour Organization conventions 87 and 98 ratified by Turkey, which protect the rights of workers to collectively organise and of trade unions to collectively bargain, and it will only be to the detriment of aviation in Turkey."

Cockroft and Chagas have also contacted the International Labour Organization’s Ankara office to highlight the issue.