“We want to be human beings as workers who are forced to live on 1200 to 1400 liras per month during the pandemic. We’re constantly under pressure. We’re not paid overtime. We’re being harassed by the management. Our wages are low, our hours are long. The overwork never ends. Our colleagues who are defending their rights, who make a sound, who complain, are put on the doorstep, being forced to transfer between branches. While the companies and brands we work for make millions and billions of dollars, as fast-food workers, we are forced to work for wages close to the poverty line. Our brothers and sisters who want to organize and unionize are immediately fired. As fast-food workers, we now say no to pressures, low wages, and inhumane working conditions. We will organize, we will enforce our rights.”
Fast-food workers from Izmir and Istanbul called out: “We want humane wages, humane work, humane life!”
Workers held a press conference in front of TAB Food Headquarters in Istanbul and Alsancak in Izmir against the harsh working conditions of fast-food workers.
Workers and Union representatives of Burger King, Popeyes, Sbarro, Arby’s, Usta Pideci and Usta Dönerci restaurants, all within the TAB Gıda corporation under the large conglomerate of Ata Holding, protested in front of the company’s headquarters against the harsh working conditions and barriers to unionization of the workers. DISK Leader Arzu Çerkezoglu, HDP MP Zuleyha Gulum, political parties and democratic mass organizations and DISK-affiliated trade unions also supported the action. DISK is the Confederation of Progressive Labor Unions, a pro-labor trade union confederation. HDP is the progressive opposition party in the National Assembly that has many progressive socialist representatives and members in its upper staff.
“What happened at TAB Gıda is a summary of what the working class is facing today in Turkey. What is happening here is what is happening throughout the country under AKP” said Arzu Cerkezoglu, DISK’s General Secretary.
“Workers are unable to bring home bread, workers are being forced to be employed at the minimum wage level while everything they buy is getting a 100 percent increase, we do not accept this,” said Turgay Özdemir of Dev Tourism Union of the same confederation.
Food workers union Gida-Is Leader Syed Aslan read the press release at the protest. Aslan said that workers from various lines of business around the country are resisting inadequate wages, layoffs, high prices, and barriers to unionization. We’re having the same problems. Therefore, we will participate in the same struggle. Our call to all fast-food workers is to organize, to be with the workers who are in resistance everywhere.”
Underlining that TAB Food Workers object to their working conditions, Aslan said,
“We want to be human beings as workers who are forced to live on 1200 to 1400 liras per month during the pandemic. We’re constantly under pressure. We’re not paid overtime. We’re being harassed by the management. Our wages are low, our hours are long. The overwork never ends. Our colleagues who are defending their rights, who make a sound, who complain, are put on the doorstep, being forced to transfer between branches. While the companies and brands we work for make millions and billions of dollars, as fast-food workers, we are forced to work for wages close to the poverty line. Our brothers and sisters who want to organize and unionize are immediately fired. As fast-food workers, we now say no to pressures, low wages, and inhumane working conditions. We will organize, we will defend our rights.”
TAB Gıda makes new investments, opens new branches, adds extra profits to its profits. Now we want our share of the profits. We want to live humanely, we want to live like decent human beings, we want to be paid humanely. We want to use our annual vacation. We want to get our overtime pay for overtime. We don’t want to be slaves. We want to have a say in decision-making processes in the workplace. As fast-food workers, we are not racehorses, we should not be competing with the so-called performance procedures. We don’t want competition, we want to work humanely. We don’t want to be robbed of our rights. We don’t want our rights to be stolen while we’re working. May our hard work be repaid in full. We don’t want to work under stress or worry about the future. We demand a safe work environment. Once again, as all TAB Food workers, we say let’s join our forces, work like human beings, live like human beings, get paid like human beings. We call on all workers to organize and qualify.
Izmir
DISK’s Food-Business and Dev-Tourism Union read a press statement in front of Alsancak Türkan Saylan Cultural Center for the rights of Fastfood workers working at TAB Gıda.
“Fastfood employees want humane wages, humane work, humane living”, Evrensel News reported. The workers chanted, “We will win together”, “Fastfood worker is not alone”, “We want a humane wage”.
DISK Aegean Regional Representative Memis Sarı, officer of General-İş Union’s Izmir Branches and The Labour Party also supported the statement. Gida-Is Union Aegean Regional Representative Ufuktan Öden read the press release:
Workers all over the country are standing up against low wages, inadequate wages, layoffs, and barriers to unionization in many workplaces, such as Metal, Motor Courier, Textile, Mining, Cargo, Health, Food, Fastfood, Mine, Warehouse, etc. Fastfood workers and Motor Courier workers have their problems intertwined. We’re having the same problems. Therefore, we will join the struggle. Our call to all Fastfood workers is to organize, to be with the workers who are in the resistance.
Sendika.Org News (MB)