Handicapped not preferred by employers

ISTANBUL - Radikal

Turkish public and private sector employers pay fines instead of hiring the handicapped. Hürriyet photo

Both the Turkish private and public sectors are opting to pay the 1,700-Turkish Lira fine rather than employ handicapped workers, according to data released by Turkey’s Labor Minister Faruk Çelik.

The data shows that neither the public nor private sector is particular sensitive to the handicapped and maintains a “whatever the fine is, we’ll pay” attitude.

According to Çelik, the public sector still needs to open its doors to an additional 31,111 handicapped employees. For the private sector this number is around 22,248.

The Labor Ministry provided this data at the behest of opposition Republic People’s Party (CHP) deputy Durdu Özbolat.

Özbolat reminded the ministry that there are currently 10 million handicapped citizens in Turkey. Male handicapped citizens make up 11 percent of total population, while 13.4 percent comprises female handicapped people.

In answer to the inquiry, the Labor Ministry announced that in the public sector there were 53,013 available spots for the handicapped. Of them, 21,902 are currently filled, but 31,111 still need to be filled. There is no data on the break down of public and private sector fine amounts.