Self-employed workers (Directive 2010/41/EU and some relevant provisions of the Recast Directive)

• Author: Kadriye Bakirci
• Pages: 87-92

87

8Self-employed workers ( Directive 2010/41/EUand some relevant

provisions of the Recast Directive)

8.1General (legal) context

8.1.1Surveys and reports on the specific difficulties of self-employed workers

The OECD’sEntrepreneurship at a Glance 2015 report says only 1.2 % of female workers

in Turkey are employers. That is higher than Japan’s 0.9 %, but below the OECD average

of 2.2 %.243

The male-dominated social structure inTurkey constitutes a serious barrier to women's

entrepreneurship. Gender discrimination experienced by women in the private as wellas

the public sphere significantly limits their visible participation in economic life outside their

homes. A sample survey ofnearly 5 000micro and small enterprises (MSEs) found that

6 % of them led by women, which shows that women's businesses tend tobe very small.

Nearly half are in trade and one-third are in industry. Many of the one-person women's

enterprises are in home-based manufacturing. Women entrepreneurs tend tobe younger

and have more education than men entrepreneurs, and about half of the women

entrepreneurs were employed aswage earners before starting their own businesses.

Virtually none ofthem made use of credit for starting their businesses and very few had

access to business support services of any kind.244

8.1.2Other issues

Another barrier tostarting a business in Turkey isthe lack oftraining on how tocreate

and grow a start-up. Basic entrepreneurship training, forexample, would require the

individual tofamiliarise him/herself with the available opportunities and procedures for

identifying supporting institutions and preparing project application packs, orobtaining

bank loans, and the like (requiring at least a high school degree). This is not the current

skill distribution suggested by the self-employed statistics in Turkey.245

8.1.3Overview of national acts

Constitution Article 48 provides that everyone hasthe freedom to work and conclude

contracts inthe field of his/her choice. Establishment of private enterprises isfree. The

state must take measures to ensure that private enterprises operate inaccordance with

national economic requirements and social objectives and in security and stability.

According toArticle 117/1 ofthe Penal Code (PC), ‘Any person who violates freedom of

work and occupation by using violence or threat or performing an act contrary to the law,

is sentenced toimprisonment from six months totwo years and imposition of punitive fine

upon complaint of the victim’.

The principle ofequal treatment between men and women who are self-employed has

been implemented through the HREIA and thePC. The PC stipulates penal sanctions for

preventing a person from engaging in any economic activities due toreasons ofhate based

on‘language, race, nationality, colour, gender, disability, political thoughts, philosophical

beliefs, religions or sects’ (Article 122). The HREIA prohibits any discrimination regarding

access toself-employment, licences, registration, discipline and similar subjects (Article

6/4).

243 OECD (2015), Entrepreneurship at a Glance 2015, OECD publishing, Paris.https://www.oecd-

ilibrary.org/industry-and-services/entrepreneurship-at-a-glance-2015_entrepreneur_aag-2015-en.

244 Ozar, S. (2016), ‘Women Entrepreneurs in Turkey: Obstacles, Potentials, and Prospects’in Chamlou, N. and

Karshenas, M. (eds.) Women, Work and Welfare inthe Middle Eastand North Africa, World Scientific; OECD

(2016), ‘Women entrepreneurship Key findings: Turkey Who wantstobeanentrepreneur?’, March 2016,

http://www.oecd.org/sdd/business-stats/EaG-Turkey-Eng.pdf. Bakirci, K. (2011), ‘Womenin Business:

Overview’,inEncyclopedia of Women in Today's World, Vol. 1, Sage Publications, USA.

245 See OECD (2015), Entrepreneurship at a Glance 2015, OECD publishing, Paris.