Turkish gov’t decree restructures economy
ANKARA
The government has introduced a number of key revisions regarding economic management, including offering cadres to thousands of subcontracted public workers, shutting down some regulatory and supervisory bodies and transferring a lender currently held by the General Directorate of Foundations to the treasury, in an emergency rule decree published in the Official Gazette on Dec. 24.
According to the new decree, thousands of subcontracted workers will be able to apply as a permanent worker for the position they are currently employed in if they have been working as of Dec. 4. They will then take written and/or oral exams to examine their qualifications. Successful candidates will sign a permanent labor contract in the next 90 days.
Some 450,000 Turkish subcontracted workers in the public sector will be offered permanent staff positions as part of the new plan, Labor Minister Jülide Sarıeroğlu said on Dec. 24.
She added that the intermediaries would also be abolished for some 400,000 subcontracted workers at municipalities.
Sarıeroğlu also said all of these workers' wages will increase as they will no longer be hired through an intermediary but by the state itself.
The labor ministry and the finance ministry have been working on a detailed plan to revise the government’s subcontracted labor system.
Two regulatory bodies to be closed down
Through the new decree, two supervisory and regulatory bodies belonging to the sugar and tobacco industries will also be closed.
The Sugar Authority, which is responsible for establishing principles and procedures over sugar, sugar production, pricing and marketing, in order to meet the sugar demand in the country through local production or imports, has been transferred to the Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry.
The Tobacco, Tobacco Products and Alcoholic Beverages Market Regulation Board (TAPDK), which follows up on operations relating to the registration, authorization and regulatory systems in tobacco, tobacco products, alcohol and liquor and issues regulations on avoiding the medical and social harms of tobacco and alcohol consumption and sector-specific implementation guidelines for the enforcement of laws, has also been closed. Its duties and authorizations have been transferred to the Health Ministry and the Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry.
Vakıfbank transferred to treasury
The Turkish Treasury will take over 58.45 percent of Vakıfbank, currently held by the General Directorate of Foundations, the decree also said.
The council of ministers will decide on the price of the transaction per-share by taking into account three different valuation reports of the stake, the decree said. The amount will be paid by the issuance of five Islamic bonds, or sukuk.
Vakıfbank, the sixth-largest listed lender in Turkey, posted a net profit of 700.7 million Turkish Liras ($183.77 million) in the third quarter, down 14 percent from a year earlier, according to its latest financial statements.
