Felicity (Saadet) Party Youth Wing leader and Konya Deputy Chairman Abdulkadir Karaduman, held a press conference in Turkey Grand National Assembly (Parliament) assessed developments in the agenda.
Karaduman made statements on the economy and current political issues, especially his party's views on the minimum wage.
THE MINIMUM WAGE SHOULD NOT BE TAXED
Drawing attention to the fact that the minimum wage has been determined below the hunger threshold for many years, Karaduman said, “Today, the cost of a worker for an employer who employs workers with minimum wage is 3,458 Turkish Liras. The figure received by the worker is 2,324 TL. The difference of 1.134 TL is tax and social security deductions. Under today's conditions, workers have difficulties in making a living, and small businesses also find it difficult to employ workers. It is possible to achieve the necessary increase in the minimum wage by reducing the taxes collected from the minimum wage earners and by reducing the social security premiums withheld from the employer. Workers working for the minimum wage are not compensated for their labor, and tax deductions are made from their salaries without being asked. It is a clear extortion to deduct taxes from the wages they receive while determining a wage that is not worthy of human honor. We express it again; "The tax should not be collected from the minimum wage."
"ONLY 24 TL REMAINS TO CITIZENS FROM MINIMUM WAGE"
Drawing attention to the table prepared by his party regarding the minimum wage, Karaduman said, "The picture you see; It is the minimum needs table of a family with two children in Ankara conditions. If you are someone who is trying to support your family with minimum wage, when you take away the basic expenses such as rent, electricity, water, fuel, and manage your life with only tea and bagel a day, there is only 24 TL from 2 thousand 324 TL. If citizens eat tea and bagels three times a day, they spend 900 TL. The state says to use this 24 TL on a hill. Will you buy clothes for 24 TL per month, will you pay for your child's school expenses, will you buy sunflower, tea, sugar, tomato paste? The state says do all of these with 24 TL. Those who set off with tea and simit while on the road, today condemned their citizens to tea and bagel. This table is Turkey's real Survivor. Those in power should listen to their conscience and account for this to the citizens. While calculating the minimum wage, calculations made far from the reality of the street will deepen this poverty. The most serious Survivor is that the minimum wage is 2 thousand 324 TL."
"THE WORKER HAS NO POWER TO SACRIFICE"
Stating that the people with low income are the most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, Karaduman stated that the workers are driven to hunger with short work allowance, flexible work and unpaid leave.
Stating that low-income citizens survive by borrowing, Karaduman said, "In this case, it is still unreasonable to expect sacrifice from the minimum wage. While measures are taken in times of crisis, disadvantaged groups are protected and supported, but the government has sent Iban to the citizen during the epidemic process, and at the end of 18 years of administration, it has almost admitted that it has made the state needy. The minimum wage earner and other low-income citizens, workers and tradesmen have no more power to sacrifice. If someone is to make a sacrifice, not the minimum wage earners, but the holdings whose tax debts continue to be erased even during the epidemic should make the sacrifice. "If it is to be cut somewhere, it should be cut not from the low wage received by the minimum wage, but from the palace whose daily expenditure reaches 10 million TL".
THE AMOUNT PAID TO INTEREST PER HOUR IS 3 MILLION DOLLARS
Drawing attention to the amount allocated to interest bearing dudget, Karaduman said: "The amount of interest that Turkey pay per hour is $ 3 million. In other words, the amount corresponding to the total of 8 thousand 800 minimum wages per hour is paid as interest. The high increase seen in the minimum wage is that the billions of liras allocated to interest expenditures every year take away. Moreover, about 3 million people work for a wage below the minimum wage. The minimum wage to be determined will indirectly affect millions of employees. The government trying to convince people of a low salary by frightening them with hunger should calculate the minimum wage based on the poverty line, not the hunger line. Equitable sharing that, all together we can build a more prosperous Turkey."