Retirement age in Turkey varies depending on the date of entry into the social security system and the number of premium days paid. Currently, the average retirement age is 58 for women and 60 for men.
Official statistics show that Turkey has over 11 million people between the ages of 45 and 54 out of its population of 85 million. Around 6.7 million of them are employed, while about 4.5 million are not working in any capacity.
This non-working group includes both unemployed individuals and those unable to join the labor force despite wanting to work.
This segment of the population has emerged as one that is “too old” to be hired but “too young” to retire. Mostly aged between 45 and 54, they are seen as too old by employers and too young by the state, leaving them without a place in either employment or retirement.
'We are condemned to harsh working conditions'
One of them is 53-year-old Songül Şarklı. After nearly a year of unemployment, Şarklı found a job as a cleaner at a hotel in Antalya.
She is currently trying to complete the final 11 months of social security contributions required for retirement. “I applied to dozens of places and kept getting the same response: ‘We don’t hire anyone over 40, we’re looking for workers under 35,’” she says.
Out of frustration during her job search, she turned to low-skilled, menial jobs where age would not be an obstacle. This is how she ended up in the hotel industry in Antalya.
“The age requirement for retirement is a critical factor for the private sector. For employers, your age alone creates a bias regardless of how active, capable, or healthy you are. Your experience also doesn’t mean much to them.
"People in my age group are not only dealing with unemployment, but also with the loss of social security, skills degradation due to long-term joblessness, and the psychological issues that follow.”
'Talk of women’s employment doesn’t include the 40+'
Şarklı says she considers herself lucky "because I have a partner to share the financial burden.”
But she highlights others her age who lack financial support and social security: “This is the result of government policies that have moved away from being a welfare state. There’s talk about increasing women’s employment, but nothing is being done to make life easier for women over 40.”
Referring to the ongoing economic crisis and worsening living conditions, she concludes, “People in my age group who can’t find work and can’t retire are fighting hunger.”
'There are listings, but no real jobs'
Another person struggling to find work due to age is Adem Kaya. Now 44 and working as a painter, Kaya says he has faced long periods of unemployment.
“Ten years ago, I moved to İstanbul. I was jobless and had no connections. I used to check the job listings in the classifieds section of newspapers and go directly to those addresses. Almost everywhere I went, I was turned down either because of my age or where I’m from,” he says.
When he asked employers, “If you’ve already hired someone, why is the job listing still up?” he was told, “The listing was for one week, that’s why it’s still online.”
“At many places—they were the majority—I was handed a form and told, ‘Fill this out, we’ll get back to you after reviewing it.’ I applied to 17 places. Ten years have passed, and I’m still waiting.
"That’s the worst part of this in Turkey, people have no empathy. Nobody thinks, ‘This person is waiting for a response and might be in need.’ Once you walk out that door, you’re forgotten.
"And there I was, waiting like a fool for days or even weeks, holding onto hope. But no one ever called to say, ‘You weren’t accepted’ or ‘You were rejected.’
“Time passed like that. I wanted to go back to my hometown, but then I thought, ‘What will the neighbors say?’ So I stayed. I considered suicide countless times. As a last resort, I tried my luck at an auto repair district. I applied to every shop with a sign saying ‘Help wanted.’ None of them hired me.
"Finally, one shop owner said, ‘Send the boy tomorrow.’ I got excited like a kid and said, ‘Boss, I’m the one looking for work.’ He replied, ‘Brother, I can’t hire you.’ When I asked why, he said, ‘Sometimes I yell at workers here. You couldn't bear that.’ I said, ‘It’s okay, boss, I’ll work,’ but he still didn’t take me. In Turkey, once you’re over 35, especially over 40, nobody wants to give you a job.”
'If you lose your job after 40, you go hungry'
Kaya eventually completed private security training at the suggestion of an acquaintance and found work as a security guard.
“I worked in places no one else wanted. I even did work outside of my job description just to avoid unemployment. I spent the hardest years of my life in İstanbul looking for work and trying to stay afloat. Now I work as a painter again,” says Kaya.
“In Turkey, once you’re over 35, people see you as useless. If you’re over 40 and don’t have savings or your own business, you literally go hungry. Neither the public nor the private sector will hire you.
"If work life really ends after 40, then the state should remember its constitutional promise of being a welfare state. If it imposes age limits, then it must also provide people with a pension and meet their basic needs.” (NÖ/HA/VK)
