Turkish opposition pushes for early election amid ‘disappointing’ minimum wage hike
ANKARA, TURKIYE - OCTOBER 22: Leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) Ozgur Ozel attends his party's group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, Turkiye on October 22, 2024. ( Özge Elif Kızıl - Anadolu Agency )
Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chairman Ozgur Ozel announced that the party is launching a campaign against the unsatisfactory minimum wage for 2025. The campaign aims to push for an early election to address the issue.
“I would like to state clearly that the 30% increase bringing the minimum wage to ₺22,104 ($626.7) is a misery wage, an imposition that we reject,” Ozel said during a press conference held at the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (TURK-IS) headquarters in Ankara on Wednesday.
Expressing his resolve, Ozel described the current wage increase as “a disaster” and argued that traditional anti-inflationary measures are “ineffective” in countries with severe income inequality, such as Türkiye, which ranks poorly in this regard globally.
“If it becomes impossible to live on this minimum wage in 2025, then there must be an election,” Ozel reiterated during another press conference at the Confederation of Turkish Real Trade Unions (HAK-IS) headquarters in Ankara. Ozel called citizens to attend a rally planned for Saturday at Ankara’s Tandogan Square, marking the start of the early election campaign.
The wage increase, determined at ₺22,104 following a 30% adjustment, has drawn criticism from workers for failing to keep pace with the annual inflation rate reported by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat).
CHP to engage with trade unions and minimum wage workers
In an interview with the pro-government outlet Milliyet, Ozel shared details of his party’s minimum wage campaign. “We are planning 2025 as an election year,” he stated, adding that the party’s budget would be prepared with this possibility in mind.
Key points from Ozel’s statements include:
- “We will not remain silent. On Saturday, we decided to invite our members to the meeting of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in Tandogan Square, Ankara. I will also attend and deliver a speech.”
- “Our 100 members of Parliament will no longer be confined to the Assembly but will be on the streets and in public squares. As the first step of this determination, they will engage with minimum wage workers in 10 different locations in Ankara, discussing the public outrage caused by the wage increase.”
- “Our party organizations will visit unions, tradespeople, and workers in their provinces, focusing primarily on industrial zones, bus stops where worker shuttles operate, and marketplaces to address this issue.”
‘2025 to be election year’
“We are planning 2025 as an election year. Even the CHP’s budget will be prepared with the possibility of an election in mind. We believe 2025 will be a year not of survival, but of elections,” Ozel stated.
He outlined plans for mass rallies and public meetings across Türkiye, starting in worker-centric cities, emphasizing economic hardships and calling for immediate elections. “We will spread this movement from worker cities to the entire country. From now on, we will be in the streets and squares,” Ozel declared.
