The Legal 500 > Europe, Middle East & Africa > Turkey > Employment

The team at Goksu Safi Isik Attorney Partnership provides 'fast and accurate' advice; it deals with issues including the drafting of employment documents, work and residency permits, employment-related litigation including dismissals and workplace accidents. Banu Mert heads the practice. Key clients are the Bank of China and IGA, the consortium building Istanbul Airport.

Gün + Partners has a full-service employment practice, handling matters such as litigation, restructuring and reorganisation, collective bargaining, workplace accident liability, employment termination compensation claims, and business immigration. Key client sectors include media and entertainment, pharmaceutical and healthcare, consumer goods, IT and telecoms, transportation and energy. Pelin Baysal leads the team. Associates Beril Yayla Sapan and Asena Aytuğ Keser are also recommended.

Hergüner Bilgen Özeke handles cross-border employment disputes, collective bargaining agreements, assistance with terminations, restructuring, and collective redundancies. Bige Yücel, who ‘has strong negotiation skills’, and commercial disputes specialist Ufuk Yalçın head the team. Recent highlights include assisting Bloomberg with matters including employment contracts, settlement agreements, and employee termination, and advising International Paper Olmuksan on a mass redundancy.

Moroglu Arseven's dedicated employment practice provides a broad range of support in contentious and non-contentious matters. Key areas of work include strategic workforce management issues relating to corporate transactions and projects; day-to-day employee-related issues; disciplinary, termination and severance procedures; regulatory advice to international clients; anti-corruption, whistleblowing, privacy and data protection policy advice; and outsourcing and contracting arrangements. The practice also offers guidance on union relations and protests, stock option plans, ongoing employee benefit requirements and international immigration procedures and requirements. Practice head İpek Ünlü Tık has significant specialist experience in negotiations, disputes, disciplinary procedures and terminations.

Balcıoğlu Selçuk Ardıyok Keki advises on business immigration, disciplinary procedures, employment handbooks, diversity and discrimination issues, incentive plans, internal investigations, collective disputes, restructurings and redundancies, and dispute mediation. Galip M. Selcuk heads the team. Counsel Gözde Manav Kılıçbeyli is noted for her ‘excellent work and analysis’. Clients include Toyota.

Ersoy Bilgehan Lawyers & Consultants assists clients with recruitment and dismissal procedures, employee benefits, workplace accidents and safety, and employment matters arising from restructurings and other corporate transactions. The team, which is ‘quick to respond’, is headed by Ergun Ersoy. Clients include Gittigidiyor, a Turkish subsidiary of eBay.

Esin Attorney Partnership, Member of Baker & McKenzie International advises local and multinational clients on litigation, immigration issues, collective terminations, restructurings and redundancies and terminating the employment of senior executives. The practice acts for clients in the technology, consumer goods, agriculture, financial and manufacturing sectors, as well as NGOs, charities and religious organisations. Senior associate Sertaç Kökenek, who has experience in compliance, leads the team. Elif Nur Çakır Vurgun is also noted.

Pelister Atayilmaz Enkur Law Office handles matters relating to collective redundancies, restructurings, outsourcing agreements, harmonisation procedures, disciplinary actions, employment termination procedures and residency permits. Emre Atayilmaz heads the team. Clients include Ralph Lauren and Almodo.

Erim Bener and Batuhan Şahmay lead the practice at Bener Law Office, which represents domestic and international clients in employment-related litigation. Matters include advice on compensation, benefits, pensions, occupational health and safety and whistle-blower investigations. The firm also has a specialised corporate immigration team.

BTS & Partners advises on restructurings, outsourcing, stock option plans, restrictive covenants and obtaining work permits for employees. The team handles compliance work for multinational companies through referrals from international law firms. Selin Beceni and Zeynep Ünlü head the practice. Clients include Lenovo and British Telecom.

Moral & Partners handles general employment advice, compliance matters, and litigation and disputes work. The team acts for clients in the heavy industry, automotive, agriculture, logistics and textiles sectors. Efe Kinikoğlu and Sezai Moral lead the team with Özgür Güner, who is recommended for his ‘tactical knowledge’. New clients include Borusan Holding, a heavy industry manufacturing group.

Paksoy advises on the dismissal of employees, drafting employment contracts and personnel handbooks, and handles matters relating to unions and collective bargaining. The ‘superb’ Elvan Aziz leads the team, which also includes senior associate Gülce Saydam Pehlivan.

Öncel, Aydın & Uygun Attorney Partnership assists clients with litigation, compliance and mediation. ‘Solution-oriented’ Buğra Aydın and Erman Öncel jointly head the practice. Clients include GlaxoSmithKline, Al Jazeera Media Network and Michael Page. In a recent highlight, the team advised on the revision of the HR and employment procedures of Sazcilar Otomotiv, a heavy industry company.

ADMD/Mavioglu & Alkan Law Office provides support on service contracting, outsourcing, pension and benefit plans, employee terminations and employment arbitration and litigation. Dilara Tamtürk and Gökçe Şanlıerli jointly head the practice. Recent highlights include advising Minus Green, a local film production company, on drafting employee contracts for three feature films.

Egemenoglu Law Firm handles issues such as disciplinary and termination procedures, collective bargaining, reviewing employment contracts, severance payments and wrongful terminations. Recent highlights include advising the Turkish subsidiary of Panasonic on a risk analysis of its employment practices, and negotiating on behalf of Saydam Fabrics with its employees’ trade union. Dilek Gürsan and Fazilet Karabacaklar jointly head the practice.

‘Knowledgeable, extremely responsive and flexible’ boutique firm Günbay Attorney Partnership provides advice on corporate compliance, immigration law, collective bargaining and health and safety law, handling both contentious and non-contentious matters. Ahu Pamukkale Gunbay, Duygu Abbasoğlu and Başar Kural lead the practice. New clients include the International Ship Suppliers Association and Kythera Capital.

Kolcuoglu Demirkan Koçakli advises on matters relating to collective bargaining, occupational health and safety, social security issues and work permit procedures. The practice also represents clients in employment disputes. Okan Demirkan, Serhan Koçaklı and counsel Maral Minasyan head the team, which is currently advising the Turkish subsidiaries of Hugo Boss on employment matters.

The ‘flexible and solution-oriented’ team at Yavuz & Uyanik advises on litigation, employment contracts and collective labour agreements, with a particular niche in clients in the insurance sector. The ‘excellent’ Murat Uyanık and Çağlar Korkmaz jointly head the team. Clients include BNP Paribas Insurance, Vienna Insurance Group and Alcazar Energy Partners.

Yazici Attorney Partnership represents clients in domestic employment litigation, in matters including reinstatement, bonuses, severance and notice pay, overtime work, the violation of non-compete clauses in employment agreements, and employee injuries. Elif Karagözoğlu, Şener Özkan and İnci Akın jointly lead the team.

YBK Law Firm in Cooperation with CMS advises on employment contracts, termination agreements, collective dismissals, employment disputes and restructuring. Döne Yalçın, who has extensive experience with collective redundancy procedures and internal investigations, heads the practice jointly with Alican Babalıoğlu.