The Workplace Compliance through Labour Inspection Guidance and Social Dialogue Project, funded under the European Union (EU) Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA III) and implemented by the International Labour Organization (ILO) Office for Türkiye in cooperation with the Directorate of Guidance and Inspection (DoGI) of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, concluded with an international closing conference held in Ankara.
Launched in 2023 to contribute to improving decent working conditions for women and men in Türkiye, the project carried out activities aimed at strengthening the institutional and technical capacity of labour inspection and guidance services, promoting compliance with labour legislation in workplaces and supporting social dialogue.
Through activities carried out primarily in Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, Bursa and Adana, the project supported the development of a preventive labour inspection approach capable of responding to the changing needs of the world of work.
Future of work discussed at international conference
The International Conference on Labour Inspection and Guidance in the Future of Work in Türkiye, organized to mark the conclusion of the project, brought together public institutions, workers' and employers' organizations, academics and international experts.
© Fatih Atıcı / ILO
During the conference, the project's main outputs and achievements were presented by Burcu Akça Hacıosmanoğlu, Senior Project Coordinator at the ILO Office for Türkiye. In addition, the findings and policy recommendations of the report entitled The Role and Future of Labour Inspection and Guidance in the Future of Work and in the Post-COVID-19 Period in Türkiye, prepared under the project, were shared with participants. The report was presented by Associate Professor Hande Bahar Aykaç from Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University and Professor Mahmut Ekşioğlu from Boğaziçi University.
The project's closing remarks at the conference were delivered by Erol Güner, Head of the Directorate of Guidance; Yasser Hassan, Director of the ILO Office for Türkiye; and Silvia Pietropaolo, Team Leader for Human and Social Development at the EU Delegation to Türkiye.
© Fatih Atıcı / ILO
Director of the ILO Office for Türkiye Hassan said: "The achievements made under this project demonstrate how international labour standards and ILO tools can be translated into concrete solutions at the national level. The recognition by the ILO of Türkiye's experience in Strategic Compliance Planning as an example of good practice at the global level represents an important achievement in making labour inspection more effective. As the world of work continues to transform, we remain committed to supporting Türkiye in strengthening workplace compliance with legislation through social dialogue, protecting workers and promoting decent work."
Director of DoGI Güner said: "Throughout the project, we carried out numerous activities that strengthened our capacity and dialogue with the social partners. Within the framework of social dialogue, we listened to the views of different stakeholders and carried out activities that directly engaged with the field. We also incorporated the views and recommendations of the social partners into this process." Emphasizing the establishment of the DoGI Academy, Güner underlined the importance of the DoGI Academy in providing a shared learning platform that enables not only inspectors but also workers, employers and stakeholder institutions to access accurate and up-to-date information.
© Fatih Atıcı / ILO
Silvia Pietropaolo, Team Leader for Human and Social Development at the EU Delegation to Türkiye, drew attention to the importance of social dialogue and the sustainability of the achievements made, alongside the project's concrete outputs. Pietropaolo emphasized that, from their perspective, the project's real success went beyond figures and activities carried out and lay in labour inspectors who had acquired new skills, more informed employers and workers who had learned how to claim their rights.
© Fatih Atıcı / ILO
International experts assess the transformation of the world of work, labour inspection and the role of social dialogue
The international sessions of the conference addressed the new needs arising from digitalization, the platform economy and non-standard forms of employment, as well as the effects of this transformation on labour inspection and guidance systems.
Patrick Belser, Head of the Inclusive Labour Markets, Wages and Working Conditions Branch (INWORK) at ILO Headquarters, participated online in a session where he addressed the international labour standards framework concerning non-standard forms of employment and the challenges arising from changing forms of work. The session also examined the promotion of decent work in the platform economy, the protection of workers and the effective implementation of labour standards.
Tim Tregenza, Senior Network Manager at the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), participated online in a session where he assessed international practices and the European perspective on platform work, digitalization and non-standard forms of employment.
Lieve Verboven, Head of the Social Dialogue, Labour Relations and Governance of Work Branch (LABGOV) at ILO Headquarters, participated online in the conference's final session focusing on social dialogue and shared her assessments of the role of social dialogue and workers' and employers' organizations in strengthening workplace compliance.
The sessions, held with contributions from international experts, provided an opportunity to share international approaches to the transformation of the world of work and to assess experiences concerning the adaptation of labour inspection systems to changing working conditions.
Role of social dialogue in workplace compliance emphasized
The conference's final session, entitled Enhancing Social Dialogue for the Future of Work: The Role of Workers' and Employers' Organizations in Promoting Workplace Compliance, was moderated by Gökhan Ateş, Deputy Director of the Directorate of Guidance and Inspection of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.
The panel featured Esin Çetinkaya from TİSK, Sema Kaynak from TOBB, Barış İyiaydın from TÜRK-İŞ, Hacer Albayrak from HAK-İŞ and Tevfik Güneş from DİSK.
© Fatih Atıcı / ILO
The panel addressed the role of workers' and employers' organizations in promoting compliance with labour legislation in workplaces, the effects of digitalization and technological transformation on labour relations, and the strengthening of cooperation among labour inspection authorities, social partners and the private sector.
Institutional capacity strengthened in labour inspection and guidance services
Under the project, which had been operating for three years, training, knowledge-sharing and institutional learning activities were carried out to develop the institutional and technical capacity of the DoGI.
In this context, online and face-to-face training sessions were organized to develop the professional knowledge and skills of labour inspectors, social partners and relevant Ministry units.
The DoGI Academy online learning platform was launched to preserve institutional knowledge and support continuous learning.
In addition, the ILO's Strategic Compliance Planning Model was adapted to Türkiye's needs and piloted in the metal sector. Activities were carried out to improve the DoGI's digital systems in order to support the more effective implementation of labour inspection and guidance processes.
312 inspection visits conducted in the metal sector
Sectoral analyses were conducted in the construction, metal, textile and furniture sectors to improve compliance with labour legislation in workplaces. In line with the Guidance Action Model developed on the basis of these analyses, the Strategic Compliance Model was put into practice through inspection visits to workplaces. A total of 312 inspection visits were conducted as part of the pilot implementation.
Prior to the inspections, guidance meetings aimed to raise awareness among employers and workers of labour legislation, rights and obligations, and the improvement of workplace compliance. These activities contributed to strengthening the guidance role of labour inspection alongside its enforcement function.
The project also developed various guidelines and information resources on labour inspection, guidance and transformations in the world of work, and translated relevant international publications into Turkish.
Project outputs expected to make a long-term contribution
The institutional mechanisms, training tools and digital applications developed under the project are expected to continue to be used after the project's completion.
The Guidance Team established within the DoGI, the Strategic Compliance Planning Model adapted to Türkiye, the DoGI Academy and the enhanced digital infrastructure are expected to contribute to the long-term capacity of labour inspection and guidance services.
Building on its cooperation and social dialogue with the government and workers' and employers' organizations, the ILO continues to support the protection of rights in the world of work, the strengthening of compliance with legislation in workplaces and the promotion of decent working conditions for all.
