DİSK/Limter-İş Union, which recruits workers from shipyards, warehouses and sea transport, is a new member of the ITF. Its recruitment campaign this year at the TEDİ warehouses in the Topkapı and Tuzia districts of Istanbul has been so successful that most of the workers there have now joined the union. In May, DİSK/Limter-İş told the ITF that the management had responded positively to its request for a meeting but the company then changed its mind and began sacking workers.
In a letter today to TEDİ chairman of the board Mehmet Kösemantoğlu ITF general secretary Steve Cotton said: “I am writing to you to raise our serious concern over union busting practices by management in two of the warehouses operated by your company.
“The union has informed the ITF that management began to dismiss workers and mistreat other workers to make them resign from the union. In total, 16 workers have been dismissed in two of TEDİ’s warehouses. In protest, workers from both operations began picketing the warehouses on 2 August and have now stopped working. We understand the company is still refusing to negotiate with the union, despite the fact that DİSK/Limter-İş represents 60 of the 90 employees in the two warehouses.
“The company’s actions seriously violate fundamental workers’ rights, as enshrined in the core labour standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO).”
Workers are taking the fight to the company by organising pickets and daily actions at warehouses and stores.
A picket is planned tomorrow at the TEDİ store in Kadıköy, an important district of Istanbul. Support is expected from the local community, customers and TEDİ retail workers, as well as other trade union organisations. This is expected to be the largest union action since the state of emergency was declared in Turkey.
Kanber Saygılı, president of Limter-İş, commented that he hoped the ITF’s letter and the international solidarity it demonstrated would help bring the company to the negotiating table.
