26.05.2026 11:00
According to the Court of Appeals' landmark decision, WhatsApp messages sent by the employer outside working hours will be considered as part of work hours, and the employee may receive overtime pay. Experts note that this situation creates psychological pressure and that Turkey lacks a regulation on the 'right to disconnect'.
The landmark decision by the Court of Appeals has sparked a new debate in the business world. According to the ruling, WhatsApp messages sent by the employer to the employee outside of working hours may be considered part of working time. This has paved the way for employees to claim overtime pay.
According to experts, the way digital communication tools eliminate boundaries in business life directly affects employees' private lives. Messages received especially after work hours create a constant pressure on employees to be accessible.
“THE EMPLOYEE’S PSYCHOLOGY IS NEGATIVELY AFFECTED”
İsmail Akgün, President of the Mobbing Education Support Research Association, speaking to Fulya Soybaş from Hürriyet, stated that after-hours messaging creates serious psychological pressure on employees. Akgün expressed that the work-life balance is disrupted and emphasized that employees' right to rest must be protected.
Experts note that constant communication increases feelings of burnout, stress, and mobbing over time.
“RIGHT TO DISCONNECT” IS LEGALLY GUARANTEED IN EUROPE
In many European countries, employees' right not to respond to work communication after hours is protected by law. Through the practice known as the "right to disconnect," interference with employees' private lives is limited.
In Turkey, however, there is no clear legal regulation on this matter yet. Legal experts state that with the spread of digital work culture, similar regulations are becoming inevitable.
OVERTIME CAN BE PROVEN WITH DIGITAL EVIDENCE
Legal expert Mustafa Zafer stated that according to the Labor Law, all work exceeding 45 hours per week is considered overtime. Zafer said, "After the pandemic, the concept of working hours has disappeared. However, according to the Labor Law No. 4857, work exceeding 45 hours per week is overtime. The overtime wage is half of the normal hourly wage. If the employer does not pay the overtime wage, the employee can terminate the employment contract for just cause, and the employer will have to pay this money with interest as compensation."