Extended Summary

Ray leave (radiation leave) is a paid leave given to employees due to their exposure to ionizing radiation. The Regulation on Health Services Provided Using Ionizing Radiation and Radionuclides (Ionizing Radiation Regulation), which brought changes to many issues regarding the ray leave, entered into force in 2022. In 2023, the aforementioned regulation was repealed and a new regulation with the same name entered into force. With the aforementioned regulation, important issues regarding ray leave were changed. This study was written in order to examine these changes.

In our study, the concept of ray leave, its legal sources and the differences in definitions among these sources, the working conditions of the employees within the scope of ray leave, the purpose of ray leave, the conditions of entitlement to ray leave and the factors that do not affect the conditions of entitlement, the duration and usage of ray leave, the employer’s failure to grant ray leave and the statute of limitations and interest on ray leave pay are examined respectively.

The ray leave is a paid leave. The purpose of the leave is to reduce the worker’s radiation exposure and to eliminate the effects of the radiation to which the worker is exposed. In this way, the worker’s health will be protected. The duration of the ray leave is not fixed. As the worker’s working hours increase to earn leave, the duration of the leave increases. For example, every 50 hours of work earns 1 day of leave. A worker who works 1451-1500 hours is entitled to 30 days of ray leave. The duration of the ray leave can be a maximum of 30 days in a calendar year.

Pursuant to the Ionizing Radiation Regulation the conditions to qualify for ray leave are as follows: exposure to radiation, being classified as a person working with radiation, working in controlled areas where ionizing radiation sources and radionuclides are used or using mobile devices such as mobile X-rays or fluoroscopies in controlled areas and working in a health institution. If one of the aforementioned conditions is missing, entitlement to ray leave cannot be granted.

Among the conditions mentioned above, the conditions of working in a controlled area and having the status of working with radiation should be specifically mentioned. When the provisions of the Regulation on Ionizing Radiation are examined, it is understood that the ray leave is specific to those working in controlled areas. Therefore, the determination of the controlled area should be sensitive. For workers working with mobile devices such as mobile X-rays or scopes, the area where the said devices are used should be considered as a controlled area. According to the Ionizing Radiation Regulation, ray leave are granted to those with radiation worker status. Radiation worker status is determined by the likelihood of exposure to radiation above a certain threshold. This regulation should not be interpreted as meaning that a worker with a potential exposure above the limit will be considered a radiation worker and entitled to a ray leave, even if they are exposed to radiation below the limit. The mere existence of the potential exposure should not be considered sufficient. To qualify for a ray leave permit, the radiation dose must exceed the dose limit set by legal regulations.

Ray leave cannot be divided and transferred to the following years. When work is performed in a calendar year to qualify for ray leave, the ray leave is taken in a single period in the following calendar year. It is an obligation for the employer to ensure the use of ray leave. The employer has the authority to determine when the ray leave will be used. The employer must give the employee ray leave at an appropriate time, taking into account the order of the workplace and the health of the employee. If the employer does not allow the employee to use the ray leave, the employee has the right to terminate the employment contract. In our opinion, if the employer does not allow the employee to take ray leave, the employee should take leave on his own. A legal arrangement should be made in this regard.

It is not valid for the employer to give money instead of giving ray leave. In this case, the leave period is not lost. When the employment contract end, unused leave are converted into money based on the last wage of the employee.