Two-thirds of textile employees unregistered in Turkey

The striking figures come on the heels of a recent statement by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who accused some employers in the textile sector of abusing the rights of their workers. Erdoğan called the employers’ actions “labor exploitation.” Some of the sector’s representatives rejected Erdoğan’s remarks; however, labor unions said they supported the prime minister’s statement, adding that the issue needs to be addressed. Erdoğan said companies should contribute to efforts to fight the unregistered economy, stressing that the government also needs the support of labor unions.

The SGK data revealed that of the 2 million textile workers in Turkey, only 689,000 are registered with the SGK, while textile firms avoid paying social security premiums for the remaining workers, meaning a huge loss for the institution. Around 250,000 of the 689,000 registered textile workers in Turkey are women, while the percentage of women among unregistered textile workers is higher. The average number of workers in each of Turkey’s 40,961 textile companies stands at 16.

Another interesting factor the SGK data shed light on with regard to the current “exploitation” in the textile industry is that the sector, along with the construction and leather manufacturing sectors, leads the list of sectors with the lowest salary paid to its workers. The average daily payment per worker stands at TL 30 in the textile industry.

Companies mostly opt to keep the salaries at low levels so they can pay the lowest possible SGK premium to the state. The lowest premium is paid for workers who receive the minimum wage, a factor that leads many firms to falsify accounts and register workers within this category. Employers pay between TL 50 to TL 100 less per SGK premium for each worker in this category.

Of the 9.03 million registered workers in all sectors combined, 4.34 million are registered in the minimum wage category. If a worker’s SGK premium is paid in the minimum wage category, it creates certain disadvantages for that employee in the long run. These workers receive lower unemployment benefits if they lose their jobs. They also receive a comparatively lower pension in their retirement than those who earn more than the minimum wage.

Unregistered employment has reached 43 percent of the overall employment in Turkey, recent data compiled by the Turkish Statistics Institute (TurkStat) have revealed. The estimated loss to the SGK due to unregistered employment is TL 25 billion.