Turkish Constitutional Court Issues Decision On Collective Bargaining Agreements

Recent Development

The Turkish Constitutional Court annulled the provision of the Unions and Collective Bargaining Agreements Law No. 6356 ("Unions Law") stipulating that the requests of employees who want to benefit from a collective bargaining agreement by paying solidarity fees before the signing of the agreement are only valid as of the date of signature of the agreement. The Turkish Constitutional Court stated that this provision is contrary to Articles 13, 51 and 53 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey ("Constitution"). The decision was published in the Official Gazette dated March 3, 2021. The decision is available online here (in Turkish). With this decision, employees who submit their requests to pay solidarity fees before the signing date of the collective bargaining agreement are allowed to benefit from provisions stipulating monetary benefits for the period before the signing date.