The government’s offer was accepted by the Civil Servants’ Trade Union (Memur-Sen), the largest of the unions participating in the talks with the government, but was rejected by the Turkish Public Workers’ Labor Union (Kamu-Sen). However, since Memur-Sen is leading the unions in the negotiations, this marked the end of two-week long negotiations.
As the last round of talks between the government and the civil servant unions did not deliver the desired agreement on Saturday, government officials revised their offer twice and eventually proposed a much better package for civil servants.
The conclusive offer includes a 4 percent increase in January and another in July and an additional payment of TL 80, while family assistance will also be increased to TL 20 in each half of next year.
“With this agreement, the lowest salary will increase to TL 1,534 in July 2011 together with family assistance,” State Minister Hayati Yazıcı, who led the government side during the talks, told reporters after negotiations in Ankara. Currently, the lowest-ranking civil servant’s salary is TL 1,300. Yazıcı drew attention to the difference between the current lowest salary and the lowest salary of 2011 which was equal to an increase of 18 percent in total. He said, “It is a perfect raise.” The lowest civil servant’s salary was TL 398 in 2003, the first year of the previous Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government, Yazıcı recalled.
The last time the government and the unions left the negotiation table with an agreement was in 2005. For the following four years, a new agreement could not be reached and the Arbitration Board stepped in to deliver a non-binding intermediary offer. Following Sunday’s agreement, Memur-Sen President Ahmet Gündoğdu said they had “the most ideal talks possible.”
