High Unemployment Keeps Minimum Wage Low

Commission on Minimum Wage, made up of government, workers' and employers' representatives gathered to determine the legal nation wide minimum wage for 2007.

The net amount is already 380,46 YTL (around 200 euros), way below the poverty line as calculated by workers' unions and other research institutions.

Economist Mustafa Sonmez said the high unemployment rate forced people to settle down to work for the inhuman minimum wage.

While Social Security Institution (SSK) statistics show 3 million 500 thousand people getting the minimum wage, all sides agree that the number is much higher including the unregistered workers in the gray market.

Moral and social issue

Sonmez defined minimum wage as "the amount that a family of four can live on".

This amount should be based on moral and social needs rather than economic balances, he added.

"Low cost and abundance of the labor force are seen as a competitive advantage for exportation numbers of Turkey. Keeping the minimum wage low is a strategic policy of the last 25 years. The IMF and World Bank policies favor this approach."

According to Sonmez, a strong labor movement and political opposition is of paramount importance to affect the minimum wage determination process.

"As of now, the labor side has no influence whatsoever on the process. Unions are dismantled; left wing political parties are apathetical to the problem. Then this is a one sided game and the result is already decided".

Labor side criticized

The Comission on Minimum Wage is made up of five representatives each from the government, labor and employers' sides.

Establishment wise Turkish Workers' Unions Confederation (Turk-Is) is the labor side at the commission but its representative ability is criticized.

Left wing Revolutionary Workers' Unions Confederation general secretary Musa Cam accused Turk-Is of "playing the dummy" in the commission and urged them to withdraw.

Urging the government to lift its reserve on the first bend of the European Social Charter article 4, Cam lists their demand as follows:

"The minimum wage should be decided as net fee, all taxes on minimum wage should be abolished".

Regional minimum wage proposals should be avoided at all costs, Cam added.

"A family can't suvive on minimum wage"

Turk-Is Research Center calculated the hunger line as 605 YTL and the poverty line as 971 YTL for November 2006.

The commission will decide on the minimum wage in accord with the Regulation on Minimum Wage, which takes into account expenses like food, shelter and transportation.

The regulation also notes that the "social and economic conditions of the country should be in consideration".

This latter is used as an excuse to hold back the amount by government and employers' sides and the commission generally sees an collaboration between the two, moving aside the labor side.(EU)