Sputnik Turkey files complaint stating journalists they fired are staging a strike

Eight journalists who have been on strike for 140 days and board members of the Journalists Union of Turkey have been called to give statements to the police following a complaint from Sputnik.

BIA News Desk

Sputnik Turkey files complaint stating journalists they fired are staging a strike

Sputnik has now filed a complaint against the journalists it fired for joining the Journalists' Union of Turkey (TGS) because they are on strike.

The eight journalists who have been on strike in front of the Süzer Plaza, where Sputnik is located, since August 17 (140th days) and the TGS Board have been called to give statements to the police following the complaint.

Sputnik claimed that the legal and lawful strike violates the 'Law on Meetings and Demonstrations No. 2911.' Additionally, they accused the journalists and the TGS of violating the freedom to work and disrupting peace.

Upon this, the TGS issued a statement and said, "Despite the fact that our laws clearly state how a strike should be conducted, and despite the fact that the Ministry of Labor and Social Security inspectors have fined Sputnik for violating union rights, the prosecutor's calling of the strikers to testify, finding the complaint justified, casts a shadow over the impartiality of the law. Nevertheless, we have no doubt that this baseless complaint, filled with mediocre allegations, will result in a decision of non-prosecution."

"Court decided that our strike is lawful"

The union statement also provided the following information:

"They claimed that the strike was illegal and filed a lawsuit. The judiciary rejected this claim, deciding that our strike is lawful. They dismissed our workplace union representative Nejdet Eksilmez. In the first hearing, the court ruled for his reinstatement. The Ministry of Labor and Social Security conducted an inspection. Inspectors determined that the collective layoffs were made not for economic reasons but for union-related reasons, imposing an administrative fine."

TGS emphasized that Sputnik employees only demand their acquired rights and the implementation of the Constitution. The union added, "Sputnik's thinking that it will intimidate the strikers in this way stems from not recognizing its employees and our union. We will not give up our justified strike, neither under court pressure nor under police pressure."

What happened?

Employees at Sputnik's Turkey office organized under the Journalists' Union of Turkey (TGS). After TGS obtained authorization by applying to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the union and Sputnik sat down to negotiate a collective labor agreement.

After more than 6 months of negotiations, Sputnik left the negotiation talks. In response, TGS declared a strike on July 24, 2023. However, on August 7, Sputnik responded by dismissing 24 TGS members, including union representative Nejdet Eksilmez, citing economic downsizing.

TGS started the strike on August 17. The Sputnik strikers have been on a sit-in at the strike tent in front of their workplace now for 140 days.