Employment Law Newsletter

As the Employment Law Department of Esin Attorney Partnership, we are pleased to share with you our monthly newsletter.

This newsletter provides a summary of the recent legal developments in relation to employment matters in Türkiye.

Regulation on Partial Payment under the Private Pension System

Publication Date: 26 September 2023

Effective Date: 26 March 2024

Summary

The Regulation on Partial Payment under the private pension system ("Regulation") published in the Official Gazette dated 26 September 2023 and numbered 32321 regulates the conditions for the use of the right to receive partial payment in relation to the savings in the Private Pension System and the rights and obligations of the parties related to this issue. With the Regulation it has become possible for participants to receive up to fifty percent of their savings in the Private Pension System in cases such as marriage, house purchase, education and natural disasters.

Important details

  • Within the scope of the Regulation, participants who have not exercised their right to a partial payment for at least 5 years may apply to the pension company for a partial payment amount of up to fifty percent of their savings from the private pension agreement to which they have paid a contribution of at least 5 times the monthly gross minimum salary amount valid as of the application date.
  • The right to receive partial payment can be exercised on condition that a commitment is made that the private pension agreement subject to the partial payment will not be terminated by exiting the system, except in cases of retirement, death or disability, within 3 years from the date of the partial payment. For applications to be made in case of education, the period will be 4 years.
  • In regions where a disaster affecting general life has been declared, participants who have suffered from the disaster will be able to apply for receiving a partial payment within 6 months following the date of the natural disaster. In this context, the right to receive a partial payment can be used only once per participant and limited to fifty percent of the last calculated savings amount before the date of the natural disaster.
  • A participant with a minimum 5-year private pension agreement in force will be able to apply for receiving a partial payment in the event of a house purchase or marriage. In each of these cases, the right to receive a partial payment can be exercised only once per participant.
  • A participant with a minimum 5-year private pension agreement in force will be able to apply for receiving a one-time partial payment only if they are enrolled in any formal education undergraduate program of a university in Türkiye, if they have not exceeded the age of 21 at the time of application.

New Decision on Freedom of Expression by the Constitutional Court

Decision Date: 2 May 2023

Summary

The Constitutional Court's ("Constitutional Court") individual application decision dated 2 May 2023 and numbered 2018/24097 ("Decision") was published in the Official Gazette dated 29 September 2023 and numbered 32324. In Decision, the Constitutional Court ruled that the examination regarding the termination of the applicants' employment agreements should be made in terms of freedom of expression and that freedom of expression was violated.

Important Details

  • The applicants' employment agreements were terminated on the grounds that they shared a declaration with other employees that included statements about insufficient working conditions, low salaries and harassment attempts by some male managers against female employees and then, during an event organized at the workplace, they shared similar statements with those present at the event and the ensuing discussion turned into a fight.
  • The applicants filed a lawsuit claiming union compensation and reinstatement. The first instance court rejected the union compensation claim but ordered the reinstatement for both applicants.
  • The defendant employer applied to the appeal court. As a result of the appeal, the first instance court's decisions regarding the acceptance of the applicants' requests for reinstatement were reversed and their requests for reinstatement were rejected. Accordingly, the applicants filed an individual application to the Constitutional Court.
  • As a result of its assessment, the Constitutional Court stated that the insulting statements that were grounds for the termination were not actually included in the declaration and that it was not appropriate to accept the punch thrown during the fight as a ground for termination without evaluating the entirety of the events. The Constitutional Court decided that the examination should be made in terms of freedom of expression and that freedom of expression was violated, and that there was a legal interest in a retrial in terms of the dispute.

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.