International Labour Organisation (ILO) Regional Director for Europe and Central, Ms Asia Beate Andrees, and ILO Office Director for Türkiye Yasser Ahmed Hassan visited our confederation, KESK, and congratulated the newly elected members of the Executive Board. KESK Co-Presidents Ms Ayfer Koçak and Mr Ahmet Karagöz and Secretary General Ms Sevgi Yılmaz attended the meeting with the ILO delegation.
The meeting, held in a challenging period in terms of professional life, trade union rights and freedoms. They exchanged views on various issues such as the problems faced by public labourers, the dismissals by decree decrees, the problems faced by women and LGBTIQ+ people, especially in the public sector, the current situation in the earthquake region, increasing poverty, child labour and especially the deaths of children in MESEMs (Vocational High Schools) in recent months, social justice, the need for peace in the face of armed conflict and violence in the Middle East, especially the massacre in Gaza, etc.
Right before the Regional Director’s visit our confederation, the ILO Committee of Experts report for 2024 has been launched. The report refers to issues including the freedom of association, the anti-democratic structure of the CBA, the employment of women in the public sector and the situation of women managers, the dysfunctional the consultative boards. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss issues that are covered by the committee report in the context of the Convention No. 87 and No. 98.
“I would like to congratulate and wish success to the newly elected management after your general assembly” said the regional director Ms Andrees. “As KESK, we appreciate your activities in the earthquake region. Likewise, we closely follow your work for public labourers. Your activities and struggle in the field of gender equality, particularly for women public labourers, is highly valuable”.
KESK Co-Presidents Mr Ahmet Karagöz and Ms Afer Koçak stated that this visit, which took place after the 11th Ordinary General Assembly of KESK and on the anniversary of the 6 February earthquakes, means a lot to our confederation. As in the past, KESK is ready to colloborate together with the ILO Office for Türkiye as well as its Headquarters in Geneva in the coming period.