Millions to lose income support
Short labour pay scheme, introduced due to the pandemic, to end soon
WHEN the Covid-19 pandemic hit Turkey last year, the government stepped in to support workers who lost their jobs.
At the peak of the pandemic, over three million people were receiving two-thirds of their lost salary under the “short labour pay scheme”, 1.3 million continue to do so.
As Covid-19 restrictions are eased across Turkey, those receiving payment as part of the scheme, which is coming to an end, are worried about how they will make ends meet.
With a ban on lay-offs remaining in place, employers say hundreds of thousands of workers will have to be put on unpaid leave.
“I did not buy clothes for a year. We are focused on paying our bills and supporting our daughter’s education,” said Nuray, a chef who has taken out a loan to support her family and makes an extra income by selling jewellery online.
Without her current support, Nuray, 37, will be left with a daily income of just 47.7 TL under another government scheme.
“We will not be able to pay our bills,” she said.
“The uncertainty is impacting us psychologically.”
JOBLESSSPIKE
“The service sector has taken a huge hit from the pandemic with more than 700,000 people in the tourism sector, including restaurant and hotel workers losing their jobs,” Pınar Kaynak of the Center for Social Policy Research at TOBB University of Economics and Technology said.
The ban on lay-offs is disguising the impact of job losses, she added. Official unemployment numbers fell to 12.2 per cent in January, Ms Kaynak said and that some two million people categorised as employed are not actively working.
These people are either on the “short labour pay scheme” or unpaid leave.
“These people will be falling under the general unemployment description after the layoff ban expires,” she said.
“It could take up to two years for previous employment levels in the service sector to recover,” Kaynak said.
“We could observe a spike in unemployment in July and August with the lifting of the lay-off ban,” she added.
Restaurants were allowed to reopen in early March as Turkey started easing coronavirus restrictions, but daily Covid-19 cases have soared close to all-time highs since, prompting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to restore a 48-hour lockdown at weekends.
Authorities are expecting Turkey’s vaccination programme to help contain further surges.
Mr Erdoğan has announced additional support for restaurants and their staff during the holy month of Ramadan, which starts in a fortnight.
The government says it will also direct funds from short labour payments to support employment, social security payments for some private sector employees and effectively decrease personnel expenses.
But some employers say those moves are not sufficient.
Ramazan Bingöl, head of a Restaurant and Tourism Association said that unless income support is extended, businesses in the sector may have to furlough 300,000 employees just as the summer high season starts.
“We are still closing down our restaurants due to the restrictions — at a time when we would be making most money,” Mr Bingöl said, adding that businesses had urged the government to extend the short labour pay scheme.