content tagged with Child labor

Sixty-six children killed while working in a school year in Turkey

Sixty-six children killed while working in a school year in Turkey

As the new school year begins, the Health and Safety Labor Watch released statistics on child labor fatalities from the previous school year.

11 September 2024

Sixteen-year-old dies in fall while working illegally on construction site

Sixteen-year-old dies in fall while working illegally on construction site

Despite legal protections, children continue to work in sectors that are prohibited or deemed unsafe, particularly in dangerous industries such as construction.

Pınar Öztürk

Children 'exploited, killed' under the guise of vocational training in Turkey

Children 'exploited, killed' under the guise of vocational training in Turkey

Nine high school students attending vocational training programs were killed in work-related incidents in the first seven months of the year.

7 August 2024 Pınar Öztürk

EU signboard removed from Adana workshop where child worker died

EU signboard removed from Adana workshop where child worker died

"In Adana, from June to September, when schools are closed, child laborers are employed in workshops in large numbers. The whole city knows this fact. The state and the Ministry of Labor know it too. But everyone turns a blind eye."

13 June 2024 Hikmet Adal

'At least 671 children killed on the job in 11 years'

'At least 671 children killed on the job in 11 years'

The primary legal model widely used for the exploitation of child labor in Turkey is apprenticeship, says the İSİG.

29 January 2024

Vocational education center student dies after his head gets stuck in sheet bending machine

Vocational education center student dies after his head gets stuck in sheet bending machine

14-year-old Arda Tonbul was a student at MESEM, affiliated with the Ministry of National Education. Tonbul was doing an internship at an iron and steel factory.

17 January 2024

Student intern working on air conditioning installation dies falling from the roof

Student intern working on air conditioning installation dies falling from the roof

In Diyarbakır, 17-year-old 10th-grade student Ömer Ç., who was taken to the Auto Dealership Site to install air conditioning ducts, fell from the roof on the second floor to the ground. The student, who was taken to the hospital, lost his 6-day struggle for life.

29 December 2023

Three children drown in irrigation canals, one still missing after five days

Three children drown in irrigation canals, one still missing after five days

One of the children was the son of a family of seasonal agricultural workers and two were Syrian refugees.

Child labor increased in Turkey in 2022, official figures show

Child labor increased in Turkey in 2022, official figures show

Children make up more than 25 percent of Turkey's population, according to the TurkStat figures.

'Full time child labor': Over 1.2 million vocational students employed in Türkiye

'Full time child labor': Over 1.2 million vocational students employed in Türkiye

Both schools and businesses profit from students' employment as "vocational training centers" are being promoted in low-income neighborhoods, says a CHP official.

16 January 2023

Three child workers killed on the job in three days

Three child workers killed on the job in three days

At least 556 children died while working in the last nine years in Turkey, according to a monitoring group.

Vocational high schools: 'They are not students but workers'

Vocational high schools: 'They are not students but workers'

Students experience workplace accidents just as adults do and safety measures at schools are not sufficient, says a new report by the FİSA Child Rights Center.

22 June 2022 Ayşegül Özbek

Ministry 'doesn't know' number of child workers in Turkey

Ministry 'doesn't know' number of child workers in Turkey

Responding to a parliamentary question, the minister of family and social services did not disclose the number of child workers in Turkey.

1 February 2022 Hikmet Adal

Agricultural workers’ child found dead in a puddle

Agricultural workers’ child found dead in a puddle

Having moved from Urfa to Çorum as seasonal agricultural workers, Kubacık family’s 13-year-old son Ali Kubacık has been found dead in a puddle during the search and rescue operations that started after the family had reported him missing.

11 October 2021

Child worker dies after being hit by pickup truck in Siirt

Child worker dies after being hit by pickup truck in Siirt

The driver of the truck has been detained after hitting the child walking with his cattle.

27 September 2021

‘Boss’s car is more valuable than child’s health’

‘Boss’s car is more valuable than child’s health’

Speaking to bianet about the trial where a child worker is given a higher sentence than his bosses who battered him, lawyer Akbaş says, “This ruling has hurt public conscience in a similar way to the ruling on children 'who stole baklava' in Antep."

17 September 2021 Ayşegül Özbek

Court ruling ignores violence against child worker

CHILD BATTERED IN AFYON

Court ruling ignores violence against child worker

The court board has given a higher sentence to the child worker battered by his employers for demanding his unpaid wage than the sentence given to the employers. The Child Rights Center has announced that it will appeal against the ruling.

17 September 2021

Child poverty in Turkey: Scrap collector, peddler, textile worker

DEEP POVERTY NETWORK

Child poverty in Turkey: Scrap collector, peddler, textile worker

A study conducted by the Deep Poverty Network shows that children work in Turkey because the adults bringing money to the household cannot work due to illness or another reason or their income does not suffice to make ends meet.

13 September 2021

‘There are doubts in the file concerning the best interest of the child’

CHILD WORKER BATTERED

‘There are doubts in the file concerning the best interest of the child’

Defendants were not present in the trial over an incident where Ş.C.K. (16) was battered by his bosses. FİSA Children’s Rights Center’s involvement in the case was rejected; the new prosecutor gave a new opinion as to the accusations.

10 September 2021 Ayşegül Özbek

Child labor in Turkey: Agricultural worker loses her life

Child labor in Turkey: Agricultural worker loses her life

17-year-old Belkize Çelik received an electric shock in the tent where she was staying and lost her life in Turkey’s Black Sea province of Ordu.

Child loses his life in occupational homicide

Child loses his life in occupational homicide

Mahmut Gül (15) lost his life after the motor of a vehicle that he was working on fell on him. Another 14-year-old child was run over by a tractor and lost her life in Bingöl.

‘At least 513 children died in occupational homicides in Turkey in 8 years’

WORLD DAY AGAINST CHILD LABOR

‘At least 513 children died in occupational homicides in Turkey in 8 years’

CHP MP Candan Yüceer made a statement on June 12 World Day Against Child Labor: “The occupational homicides of children mostly happen in the field of agriculture, where child labor is frequently encountered and poor conditions are prevalent.”

'Even meeting daily needs is a "cause of death" for child workers'

SEASONAL AGRICULTURAL CHILD WORKERS

'Even meeting daily needs is a "cause of death" for child workers'

Drowning in irrigation canals is not the only reason for the deaths of seasonal agricultural child workers. There are those who fall from a tractor or hoeing machine, poisoned by snake or scorpion bites, small children accidentally run over by a tractor...

12 May 2021 Ayşegül Özbek

Seasonal agricultural workers: ‘Deprived of hygiene, detached from education’

PROBLEMS AGGRAVATED BY PANDEMIC

Seasonal agricultural workers: ‘Deprived of hygiene, detached from education’

Problems of seasonal agricultural workers in Manisa are aggravated even more by the pandemic. In addition to a dire need for hot and clean water, the income inequality and the number of children detached from education rise every year.

7 May 2021 Esmer Değirmen

Two children drown in an irrigation canal in Urfa

Two children drown in an irrigation canal in Urfa

Amid reports that six children lost their lives in irrigation canals in different cities across Turkey in the last three days, two siblings, working as shepherds in Urfa, fell into an irrigation canal and lost their lives.

Child labor rate in 15-17 age group: 16.2 percent

TURKSTAT STATISTICS

Child labor rate in 15-17 age group: 16.2 percent

According to the “Statistics on Child” released by the state agency TurkStat, children constitute 27.2 percent of Turkey’s population. The rate of labor force participation among children aged 15-17 is 16.2 percent.

‘It is very important that this case doesn’t end in impunity’

VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILD WORKER

‘It is very important that this case doesn’t end in impunity’

Ahead of the first hearing of the trial over violence against a child worker in Afyon, Ezgi Koman has called on everyone to stand up against the economic exploitation of children and impunity for violations of children’s rights.

14 April 2021 Ayşegül Özbek

One suspect arrested for battering child worker

One suspect arrested for battering child worker

The child’s attorney Elif Tuğba Şahin says that both her client and his family are really sad and afraid that the other suspect has been released on probation: “They are worried about their life safety.”

Child dies in occupational homicide, company official arrested

Child dies in occupational homicide, company official arrested

Halil Şenbüyük (16), who was driving an excavator, lost his life on December 10 after the vehicle went off the road and fell off a 50-meter cliff in Antalya.

14 December 2020

‘Budget proposal disregards disadvantaged groups in Turkey’

HDP MP KERESTECİOĞLU

‘Budget proposal disregards disadvantaged groups in Turkey’

Commenting on the 2021 Budget Proposal, HDP Ankara MP Filiz Kerestecioğlu has underlined that the proposal in question disregards women, children, disadvantaged groups and refugees in the country.

9 November 2020

Two child workers lose their lives in Osmaniye, Samsun

Two child workers lose their lives in Osmaniye, Samsun

In a statement on June 12 World Day Against Child Labor, Minister of Family, Labor and Social Services Zehra Zümrüt Selçuk said that “Turkey’s struggle against child labor was continuing successfully.”

26 October 2020

14-year-old Syrian child worker stabbed to death

14-year-old Syrian child worker stabbed to death

Child worker Vail el-Mansur was stabbed to death by his peers from his neighborhood while he was on his way to work in Konya province.

22 October 2020

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