Employment & Labor Law in Türkiye

At Kotan & Gökce Law Firm, we specialize in protecting the workplace rights, personal liberties, and financial compensation of expatriates, foreign executives, and international workers operating within Türkiye. Whether you are employed under a local contract, an international assignment, or a specialized foreign work permit, we manage your employment disputes from inception to resolution, ensuring your legal protections under Turkish Labor Law are strictly enforced.

Professional life forms the bedrock of our economic security, yet it frequently intersects with complex legal disputes. Issues such as unfair dismissal, unpaid severances, workplace harassment (mobbing), unpaid overtime, workplace accidents, or discrimination regarding union activities place severe financial and emotional burdens on employees. Navigating these challenges within a foreign legal framework, under unfamiliar statutory codes, and often amidst language barriers requires an expertly structured, strategic approach.

Our Scope of Services:

  • Justified Terminations: Guiding foreign workers through the legal execution of terminating their own employment contracts for just cause due to employer breaches, safeguarding severance rights.

  • Reinstatement Lawsuits: Launching legal actions (işe iade davası) against unfair or groundless dismissals to secure reinstatement or statutory compensation.

  • Recovery of Employment Claims: Collecting unpaid severance pay (kıdem tazminatı), notice pay (ihbar tazminatı), unused annual leave, and accrued overtime wages.

  • Workplace Harassment & Mobbing: Formulating legal strategies, internal complaints, and damages claims to combat psychological harassment and hostile work environments.

  • Workplace Accidents & Occupational Health: Litigating comprehensive material and moral damages claims stemming from workplace injuries or illnesses.

  • Social Security & Premium Corrections: Rectifying instances where employers fail to report foreign workers to the Social Security Institution (SGK) or underreport actual salaries.

  • Mandatory Mediation Representation: Providing expert bilingual representation during mandatory pre-litigation employment mediation (arabuluculuk) sessions.

Why Kotan & Gökce?

Deep Understanding of Foreign Worker Regulations:

We expertly navigate the intersection of general Turkish Labor Law and specific regulations governing foreign work permits, international assignments, and expat benefit packages.

Aggressive Protection of Compensation:

Whether dealing with unrecorded cash payments, complex bonus structures, or hidden overtime hours, we build meticulous evidentiary files to recover the full financial value of your labor.

Bilingual Strategic Advocacy:

We remove the stress of navigating local labor tribunals by managing all communications, negotiations, and filings in fluent English, keeping your interests secure and fully transparent.

Critical Employment Realities under Turkish Labor Law

Being dismissed abruptly without a written, valid, or substantiated justification.

If an employer terminates your contract without satisfying the strict statutory definitions of a valid reason or just cause, you can file a Reinstatement Lawsuit within narrow statutory deadlines. For eligible foreign workers, this can result in substantial compensation payouts equivalent to several months’ salary if the employer refuses reinstatement.

 

Termination or retaliation driven by participation in trade unions or labor organizations.

An employee’s right to engage in union activities is fiercely protected by the Turkish Constitution and international conventions. Dismissals triggered by union involvement are strictly void, granting the affected worker the right to claim hefty, punitive union compensations (sendikal tazminat).

 

Enduring systemic, long-term overtime work without receiving mandatory premium pay.

Turkish law sets a strict cap on weekly working hours. Proving uncompensated overtime requires a sophisticated combination of digital workplace footprints, electronic communications, corporate records, and credible witness testimonies to successfully override inaccurate corporate payroll sheets (bordro).

Suffering temporary incapacity or permanent disability due to a workplace injury.

Navigating a local workplace accident involves complex interactions with state medical boards, independent forensic experts, and liability audits. We pursue both material damages (for lost future earning capacity and medical bills) and moral damages (for emotional distress) to secure complete financial restitution.

 

Resigning voluntarily due to employer misconduct, toxic behavior, or withheld wages.

If you are forced to quit because your employer behaves unethically, delays salary payments, or subjects you to mobbing, you possess the right to terminate the contract immediately for “Just Cause.” Doing so legally preserves your right to claim full severance pay, despite being the party who initiated the resignation.

 

You do not have to face workplace injustice or contractual exploitation alone in a foreign country. To protect your career, regularize your social security standing, or recover your hard-earned financial compensation in Türkiye, contact our employment law team to schedule a consultation.

Your legal partner in Izmir-Turkiye

Please contact us for consultation. You can reach us via WhatsApp, phone or e-mail.

info@kotangokce.com Mon – Fri 09:00-18:00

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