The process continues in the 7th Term Public Collective Agreement negotiations covering the years 2024-2025 for civil servants and civil servant retirees.
Minister of Labor and Social Security Vedat Işıkhan and Memur-Sen, the authorized confederation at the collective bargaining table, met for the third time.
Minister Işıkhan announced the government's second proposal before the meeting.
SECOND RAISE OFFER
In 2024, a 15 percent raise was offered for the first 6 months and 10 percent for the second 6 months. The 2025 raise offer was 6 percent for the first 6 months and 5 percent for the second 6 months.
The government increased the offers by one percentage point for 2024 and left them unchanged for 2025.
“43 PERCENT INCREASE IN JANUARY’
Minister Işıkhan said that considering the inflation forecasts, an increase of 43 percent is foreseen for January 2024, and that the cumulative increase will reach 57 percent with the second 6-month increase of 2024.
“WE WILL WORK FOR 3600 ADDITIONAL INDICATORS”
In his speech before the proposal, Minister Işıkhan said the following:
“There are a large number of proposal items related not only to financial rights but also to social rights. The point we have reached today with the negotiations shows that we have many items to agree on. We will work together with the authorized confederation for 3600 additional indicators for all public servants who reach the first degree. We will work on disciplinary amnesty under certain conditions. We will continue to work for promotion exams to be held for a certain period of time and at regular intervals. We will be in close consultation with our stakeholders on the issue of granting Hajj leave and giving priority to those who do not have a house in TOKİ housing.”
MEMUR-SEN IT MEANS WE ARE NOT UNDERSTOOD
Ali Yalçın, President of Memur-Sen, made a statement in front of the Ministry of Labor and Social Security after the meeting held at the Ministry of Labor and Social Security within the scope of the 7th Term Public Collective Bargaining Negotiations. Evaluating the government's second offer, Yalçın said the following:
“Today the second offer was expressed. It is the 24th day of the submission of the collective bargaining proposals and the 17th day of the negotiation process. When we look at the incoming offer, it is 15 plus 10, 6 plus 5. The fact that it is two points higher than the previous offer shows that the expectations of public servants and our offer are not understood, that we are not understood. In this respect, first of all, I express my astonishment.
“WITH 33 PERCENT STANDING AT THE DOOR”
It is really incomprehensible that the Central Bank's inflation target for 2024 is 33 percent, while the offers are hovering around 23, 25 figures, and the second offer is announced without any sentence for the second year. We have always believed that this table is a solution table and we have fought accordingly. Today, while the second offer is being expressed, the fact that there is a sentence about social rights such as 3600 additional indicators in the first degree, disciplinary amnesty, title change in the post, mobbing monitoring board, giving priority to public servants in TOKİ housing, I say that this is only the optimistic side of the table.
“WE ARE IN A TIME CRUNCH”
We have only just begun to discuss a few service lines, and the other service lines are still ahead of us. In this respect, there is a need to keep the table running without interruption, because we are in a situation where time is running out. We need both to keep the table running and to bring these proposals back as soon as possible with serious figures. The welfare share agenda should not be ignored at this table. Mr. President's election declaration, referring to the years 2023-2024, taking into account the growth rate, the promise that ‘we will give welfare share to public servants’, the election declaration stands like a door. The clause about our demand for 1650 TL has not yet been discussed at the table. The sentence about rents has not yet been established. There is not yet a sentence at the table about counting 8077 TL to pension contributions and improving the situation of pensioners.
“WE EXPRESS HERE THAT YOU SHOULD COME WITH A PROPER PROPOSAL”
We will run the table to the end, we are the solution side. We want our problems to be solved at the table. We express here that these proposals should be revised and that we should come up with a proper serious proposal. There is not much to talk about on this ground, where there is no welfare share, where the figures without the titles I have just mentioned are increased from 23 to 25 percent and presented as a second offer. But we believe in the solution power of the table because the expectations of public servants depend on it. We are not talking about the present, we are making the collective agreement for 2024-2025. Therefore, this table should increase its solution capacity in order to prevent the public servants and civil servant pensioners from being victimized in the coming period. The way to do this is through the Ministry of Finance, our Minister of Labor and the Public Employer's Committee. Therefore, I invite the Public Employer's Committee to re-evaluate this issue as soon as possible.’
“WE WILL TAKE WHATEVER STEPS THE UNION TAKES”
On the question of what steps they will take if their proposals are not accepted, Yalçın said, “We are a union, we will take the steps a union would take. Therefore, we are here at this table in good faith. We are pushing for a solution, we have never lost hope, we have always kept our hope.”.
WHAT WAS THE FIRST RAISE OFFER?
The government announced its first raise offer on August 14. Accordingly, a 14 percent raise was offered for the first 6 months and 9 percent for the second 6 months in 2024. The 2025 raise offer was 6 percent for the first 6 months and 5 percent for the second 6 months.
Memur-Sen had stated that the offer was insufficient and demanded a revision of the figure.
HOW WILL THE NEGOTIATION PROCESS WORK?
If no agreement is reached, a new offer will be tabled on August 22. If the parties fail to reach an agreement on this date as well, they will apply to the Arbitration Board for Public Officials. At this stage, the board will announce its decision on the contract by the end of the month at the latest.
WHAT DO CIVIL SERVANTS WANT?
For 2024, Memur-Sen had asked for an increase of 35 percent in the first 3 months, 10 percent in the second 3 months, 15 percent in the third 3 months, and 10 percent in the fourth 3 months, including prosperity share in 3-month periods.
For 2025, the Confederation had demanded a 25 percent increase in the first 6 months and a 15 percent increase in the second 6 months, including prosperity share in 6-month periods.
Rent subsidies, holiday bonuses and reflecting the diluted increase made to civil servants to the retired were among the demands.