Turkish Red Crescent Association
The workers of the Turkish Red Crescent Blood Centre joined Dev-Sağlık İş, (UNION of Progressive Health Workers) an affiliate of DİSK, to get better working and living conditions. There is no doubt that being a member of a UNION is a fundamental human right and it suits with the constitution and laws of Republic of Turkey.
However we regretfully would like to express that exercising this right is not welcomed by management of Turkish Red Crescent Association. First they tried to assign the workers to long distances and then fired the challengers who are against this actions. 10 workers who are working at İstanbul Çapa Blood Centre for 15-20 years are tried to assign to Şırnak and Ardahan, which haven’t got any Red Crescent stations, without giving a legal ground. Contracts of the workers who expressed the illegality of this action has been dissolved. Then 6 nurses who attended a UNION activity received the same enforcement. Their law suit will be seen at the court on 26.12.2008. Anti-UNION repressions are carrying on.
Struggling for workers’ right to be a member of a trade UNION is the fundamental duty and presence reason for DİSK. It is obvious that this case in Red Crescent does not conform with provisions of ILO. We believe that we can solve this problem with dialogue and therefore we asked for an appointment from Turkish Red Crescent Association management on 17.20.2008. Nevertheless we haven’t got an answer yet.
DİSK and Turkish Red Crescent Association have showed solidarity for years during disasters, DİSK always support and protect Turkish Red Crescent Association carefully. We want to underline that we will show the same solidarity act to our important aid organisation Turkish Red Crescent Association.
On the otherhand the discussions have taken place between representatives of the European Commission and of the Turkish administration on the question of opening the Chapter on Social Policy and Employment within the context of Turkey’s Accession to the European UNION. Meanwhile the repressions against trade UNION rights are going on.
But members and activists of the UNION are under repression by Turkish Red Crescent Association for long time. Red Crescent recently organised staff meetings to force our members to resign. Even the General Manager participated those meetings.
DİSK will undertake all the actions by ILO and the other international trade UNION organisations if the repression and discrimination continues. We don’t want our country’s important aid and solidarity organisation to be frayed. We are ready to serve for dialogue and for developing solution about UNION rights within Turkish Red Crescent Association.
