Construction workers employed at the Sakarya City Hospital project have blocked the entrance of the İstanbul headquarters of the contracting firm ATR Yapı the seventh day of protests over unpaid wages.
Workers led by the Construction Workers’ Union (İnşaat-İş) accuse the employers of withholding their salaries and launched their protest on Apr 17 after what they say were unfulfilled promises of payment.
After the workers blocked the entrance, riot police intervened, positioning themselves between the workers and the building while holding barricades:
ATR YAPI'nın bulunduğu plazanın girişini kapattık
— İnşaat-İş Sendikası (@insaatsendika) April 21, 2025
Ya hakkımız olanı verip onurumuzla oynamaktan vazgeçersiniz ya da biz haklılık ve meşruluğumuzun gücüyle elimizden gelen her şeyi yaparız!
İnşaat işçisinin köle olmadığını öğreneceksiniz! pic.twitter.com/cSeuqLekzL
The union criticized the police deployment on social media, saying, “As always, it is the police who come to the rescue of the bosses. Riot police were brought not to those who failed to pay workers their legal dues, but to those who have no choice but to resist.”
In a separate post addressing the employers, the union said, “Either you give us what we are owed and stop playing with our dignity, or we will do everything within our rights. You will learn that construction workers are not slaves."
Many of the workers had traveled from the southeast for the job and returned home after assurances their wages would be paid. When those promises were not kept, they came to İstanbul to launch a sit-in outside the company’s offices, spending nights on the sidewalk.
'A hub of labor violations': İstanbul shipyard workers climb crane protesting unpaid wages
The Sakarya City Hospital project is part of Turkey’s public-private partnership (PPP) initiative to build large medical complexes called "city hospitals." These hospitals have faced criticism for the state-backed guarantees to operators based on projected patient numbers, which can create high costs for the treasury.
Health professional organizations, including the Turkish Medical Association (TTB), have voiced concerns that the city hospital model favors profit over accessible, primary-level care. (AD/VK)
