ABSTRACT

Freedom of association is among the most important social rights ensuring economic freedom of employees and accelerate the social and political extension. Therefore, trade union rights are among the fundamental rights. The Act No. 6356 on Trade Unions and Collective Labour Agreements was enacted to provide the working class with a liberal and modern law. However, it has failed to satisfy the expectations and also violated The Constitution in some respects. The Constitutional Court has reviewed 21 applications regarding the subject of contradiction of the law. The Court has accepted three of them and it has dismissed 18 applications. The resolutions of the Constitutional Court favoured the freedom of association in some cases but kept some provisions regarding the limitation of trade union rights in some other cases. The Denial of 18 applications regarding the contradiction of the law would adversely affect the exercise of trade union rights. The Constitutional Court has the duty of reviewing the compliance with the human rights in addition to the compliance of the laws with the Constitution. However, the Constitutional Court fails to perform this duty adequately, and it only focuses on narrow interpretations. Although the Constitutional Court has annulled some decrees in the law, there has not been reached to the target of the legal regulation that aims to protect disadvantaged people, to provide social justice and to guarantee freedom of association. Although the Constitutional Court has given more liberal resolutions in recent years, this tendency has to be strengthened. This article will examine decisions of the Constitutional Court under the light of the freedom of association