05.01.2026 13:33
Ali Yalçın, the General President of Memur-Sen, stated that the 18.6% increase in civil servant and pensioner salaries to be implemented in January 2026 is insufficient. Yalçın said, "Action is definitely on our agenda. Let everyone know this."
Millions of civil servants, civil servant retirees, and SSK and Bağ-Kur retirees have been waiting for the critical inflation data, which has now been announced.
According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), the Consumer Price Index increased by 0.89% in June, while the annual rate reached 30.89%.
CIVIL SERVANT SALARY INCREASE REVEALED
With the announcement of this data, the salary increases for civil servants have become clear along with the 6-month inflation figures.
As of January, civil servant salaries will be increased by 18.61%.
MEMUR-SEN PROTESTS THE INCREASE RATE
After the announcement of the civil servant salary increases, Memur-Sen General President Ali Yalçın held a press conference at the headquarters of his union in Ankara.
Speaking after the increase and recalling that the 8th Term Collective Agreement ended in disagreement, Yalçın stated, "We did not want to be part of the insistence on error. The public employer delegation called our proposals a fantasy. But at this point, it has been seen how accurate our proposals are."
Stating that the lowest civil servant salary is 58,300 lira, Yalçın noted that someone earning this salary cannot dream of marriage or establish a home.
Yalçın mentioned that a civil servant with 30 years of service has a retirement bonus of 980,000 lira, and that this amount is not enough to buy even a shed, let alone a house.
"ACTION IS DEFINITELY ON OUR AGENDA"
Yalçın said, "Action is definitely on our agenda. Let everyone know this," and stated that they held a press conference today to express their demands for a flat increase and changes in the collective bargaining system.
"THEY IGNORE OUR JUST DEMANDS"
Ali Yalçın recorded the following in his statements:
The income inequality in the public sector has transformed from a technical problem into a moral issue. The gap between those sharing the same room and doing the same job has widened; our public officials, who have come through exams and worked hard, have become unable to find the value of their labor. The salaries/wages, retirement bonuses, and pensions determined by the Arbitration Board, ignoring Memur-Sen's just demands, have eroded against inflation, leaving public officials in a continuous struggle for survival.
DEMAND FOR FLAT INCREASE
Another major problem in the public sector is the injustices in Income Tax. As long as a tax system is not established where those who earn less pay less and those who earn more pay more, and as long as the indirect tax burden on workers is not alleviated, it is not possible to achieve justice in taxation. Reform in the public personnel system is essential to solve all these problems. As Memur-Sen, we see it as urgent and essential to implement a flat increase in the base salary that reflects past losses, to complete the reform in the public personnel system by 2026 for labor peace, and to align Law No. 4688 with universal norms in terms of duration, authority, and Arbitration Board structure.
"WORKING PEACE WILL BE DISTURBED"
The public employer should note these issues at the top of their agenda and should also find solutions to other problems of public officials that are recorded in the collective agreement. Bearing the economic cost is much cheaper and easier than taking on the social cost that will arise from the disruption of working peace."