LABOR AND SOLIDARITY DAY

Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis released a message to celebrate May 1, Labor and Solidarity Day of workers and employees.

In his message, Minister Bagis said "We have become the 16th greatest economy in the world, and can enter the coming years with a record-breaking growth rate thanks to our workers and employees who have worked night and day."

Bagis stated that the workers in factories, mines, shipyards, farms, service industry and other working areas were the real owners of this success, and added:

"Just as our workers work hard for a stronger and wealthier Turkey, we also continue our efforts to become a country of EU standards in all respects, with the vision of our Prime Minister, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Thus, we are attaining the dream of a more democratic and liberal Turkey.

With the contributions of our EU process, we have acknowledged the rights of our workers who were deprived of even the fundamental rights. We have declared May 1 an official holiday and started celebrating it as a Labor and solidarity Day since 2008, which was banned by coup administrations. We opened the Taksim Square up to workers' day celebrations, and showed that it was possible to celebrate this special day in a festival atmosphere. "

Bagis expressed that they have “made liberal changes to the September 12 Coup Constitution with the September 12 Referendum” and stated that with those amendments they have paved the way for laborers to become members to several different unions and strengthened their union rights.

Bagis indicated that by the Constitution, they have assured the Economic and Social Council which consists of the representatives of unions, associations and confederations with constitutional assurance.

“Besides all these achievements, we have enhanced Turkey’s prosperity, and will keep on enhancing it because we don’t think it’s enough yet. Our laborers will increase the production with their knowledge, education and efforts and we will provide everyone with bigger and fair slices of the cake. Instead of giving vain promises and presenting romantic ideologies to our laborers and to Turkey, we present actions and welfare plans. Our politics is strong, Turkey is strong. I hereby wish all our laborers a happy labors day and commemorate all the laborers who were murdered on May 1 of 1977 and who lost their lives in work accidents. I also condemn the fact that a set of outdated politics are taking shady gangs under their wings while the dark memory of 1 May, 1977 is still on our minds” said Bagis.