The strike at the Steel Cord Factory of Belgium-based Bekaert in Kocaeli continues with determination. Bekaert workers, who do not recognize the decision of Turkish President Erdogan to prevent the strike, which he announced at midnight saying that "it is disrupting national security", have been resisting for 5 days. After an agreement could not be reached in the collective bargaining negotiations that started in July, 400 workers organized in the United Metal-İş Union of DİSK, which went on strike on 13 December. They said that they would resist until the demand for an hourly wage of 100 TL (around 5 euro) was accepted. Speaking to ANF, the workers emphasized: "We have lit the shepherd's fire, shame on those who try to extinguish it".

'World’s biggest factory pays us 100 TL per hour'

A worker on strike, who did not want to be named, said that with the deepening economic crisis, their salaries also decreased and they had become insufficient to live. He said that they work 8 hours, 6 days a week and noted that they receive an average of 8 thousand-10 thousand TL (400-500 euros), but this is not enough. Reminding that they started the strike with the demand for an hourly wage of 100 TL, the worker said that the boss did not agree to this, and that the employer offered 65 TL per hour in the latest negotiations.

The worker said: “The work we do is not simple. We manufacture the steel courts found in automobile tires and ship them from there to all tire factories in the world. After working in the factory for 3 years, you can finally master this job. In other words, it is a difficult job which requires skills. This factory where we work in Izmit is the world's largest steel court manufacturer. However, they paid us very little. I am a father of two and I have a responsibility to feed them. I will not let anyone violate my rights.”

'Our answer to the prohibition will be here and at the ballot box'

The worker said that they were surprised when they heard about the ban on the strike, and added that the resistance has been going on for months. He said that they kept their activities to a minimum during the negotiations, but they went on strike when no results were achieved. Underlining that the right to strike is a legal right, the worker said that they will use this right to the end. Emphasizing that all 400 workers are determined on this issue, the worker said: "We will continue our resistance with determination and we will give the necessary response to the prohibition both with the resistance here and at the ballot box."

‘We worked even during the Covid pandemic’

Another worker, who did not want to be named, explained that they never stopped production during the Covid pandemic and that they worked while everyone was at home. Pointing out that they are a factory that broke a record in production during the pandemic, the worker said: “We worked non-stop during the pandemic and we did not receive any customer complaints during those 3 years. We didn't deserve this."

Gökhan Taşyürek, who has been the worker representative at the factory for 6 years, said that the workers brought the factory to this high standard, but today their demands were not met. “This is a sapling that we have carefully planted and watered for years, but the employer wants to uproot this sapling,” said Taşyürek.

Reminding that workers doing the same job in Belgium receive much higher wages, Taşyürek noted that they do not accept this inequality. “The wage we demand is one quarter of the minimum wage in Belgium.”

'We will continue to struggle'

Taşyürek said that this was not their first strike. They struggled in 2011, and they went on strike again in 2016. Explaining that the use of an unrealistic excuse such as "threat to national security" against the strike caused a great reaction among the workers, Taşyürek said: "There are, of course, workers who voted for the AKP in this factory, and this situation offended them. They are protesting as well. We will continue our struggle until we get 100 TL per hour.”