STUDY Trade Unions in Turkey DEMET ŞAHENDE DINLER Dezember 2012 n Turkish trade unions suffer from two persistent problems that impede their organis­ing in any sustained way. First, Turkey's restrictive trade-union legislation, criticized repeatedly as contradicting international conventions on labour rights, has made it difficult for unions to obtain legal recognition. Second, employers use various tac ­tics to discourage unionisation, including intimidation, harassment and dismissals of union members, which often go unpunished. Recent legal amendments covering public servants’ unions and proposed draft legislation for workers’ trade unions fall well short of enhancing democratic freedom and guaranteeing the right to organise. n Despite attempts to increase their public visibility and voice demands, the political influence and social acceptance of Turkish trade unions remain limited. The real un ­ionisation rate is estimated to be 8.9 percent of the entire workforce. Similarly, due to the high number of non-registered workers, the effective ratio of the workforce covered by a collective bargaining agreement may be as low as 3 percent. Ideologi­cal cleavages between trade unions operating in the same sector and between un­ion federations are strong. n Despite structural constraints, trade unions still have the potential to boost member­ship. Some trade unions have been able to grow over the last decade by organising in multinational companies with the help of global pressure. Others have focussed their energy on organising subcontracted workers in the context of an increasingly precarious, flexible and informal labour market promoted. n Trade-union leadership and decision-making structures remain hierarchical and do not give enough voice to shop stewards and local branches. Women and young workers are under-represented. A democratic trade-union movement has yet to flourish. International Trade Union Policy