Unionization in Turkey dragging below 10 pct

ANKARA - Anadolu Agency

Only 9.6 percent of 12.28 million Turkish workers are union members, the Labor Ministry data has shown. AA photo

Union membership in Turkey remains below 10 percent, falling far behind European Union and OECD averages, freshly announced data from the Labor Ministry has shown.

According to statistics announced by the ministry, only 1.189 million of 12.28 million workers are union members, constituting just 9.6 percent of all workers.

The remarkable difference between Turkey and the EU and Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) averages has once again highlighted the woeful nature of labor rights in Turkey.

Despite a considerable uptick over last year’s level, which was around 8.6 percent, the rate is still far below the unionization rate average in the EU, 23 percent, and in the OECD, 17 percent, according to the latest available data.

Meanwhile, the ministry figures also revealed that unionization rates among public servants were around 70 percent, with 1.6 million of 2.271 million officials being members of unions.