Introduction
This article will examine remote working in Turkey. Recently remote working has become essential for many companies all around the world. However, thanks to low employment costs and wages, many global companies especially prefer Turkey to employ teleworkers. Undoubtedly teleworking may cause numerous legal problems in the near future, as will be seen below. The present guide provides a comprehensive overview of such potential legal disputes in Turkey.
For a brief evaluation on the legal problems about remote working, see our article on 'Are We Ready for All Potential Challenges of Working Remotely?'.
Is There Any Legislation Regulating Remote Working in Turkey?
There is no doubt that remote working has become the new normal all over the world after the Covid-19 outbreak.
For more information about the meaning and advantages or disadvantages of remote working, see our article on "The Work From Home During and Beyond the Pandemic".
In accordance with Article14 of the Labor Law (Law No. 4857), the Regulation on Remote Working ("the Regulation") entered into effect on 10 March 2021. Remote work means, within the sphere of the Regulation, 'the work carried out outside the central workplace through financial technology tools or directly at home'.
The said Regulation is available online here.
There are certain obligations arising from the said Regulation for managers:
Firstly, employers should provide necessary tools and equipment for employees to carry out the job (Article 7),
Secondly, there is an obligation to prepare and sign a written remote work contract including the description of the job, the working hours and place, the wage and payment type, the communication methods, (Article 5)
Besides, work-related expenses are reimbursed by the employer to the employee, (Article 7),
Last but not least, employers must take necessary steps in the protection of personal data and occupational health and safety (Article 11 and 12).
What Are the Rights of Remote Workers?
The Regulation in question protects certain rights of teleworkers including the right to privacy (Article 11) and the right to health. (Article 12).
Nevertheless, the fundamental drawback of the Regulation is the lack of additional guarantees regarding working hours, mandatory expenses and office costs. Indeed, the Regulation makes references to the labor contract, regardless of certain commitments of employers on those matters. However, it is necessary to impose binding obligations upon managers to handle mandatory office expenses for instance. Since it is widely accepted that employers are required to cover expenses related to remote work. An opposite approach may make distant workers very weak and powerless against employers. Besides, the Regulation does not say anything regarding the costs of occupational injuries or harms or insurance obligations.
However, managers cannot ignore effective implementation of international standards and principles developed by international organizations including the World Health Organization and the International Labour Organization.
Conclusion
As a conclusion, remote working in Turkey is increasing in popularity. Though, it is not easy to carry out telework within the jurisdiction of Turkey since the relevant Regulation has serious flaws and gaps. There is an unchangeable rule on such shortcomings: "better safe than sorry". For the better protection of distance workers, qualified legal support and guidance in Turkey is needed. Extensive consultation may be very instrumental in competing potential legal disputes and cases. Moreover, employers must be very careful at respecting the human rights of teleworkers. Otherwise they may face serious legal challenges on the way forward.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.