ABSTRACT

It is inevitable to participate in certain proportion of political activities so that unions can protect the rights of the group they represent in addition to social and economical functions. The unions are a pressure group affecting political life, too. However, the dimension of political activities are restricted within the framework of law. First of all, the historical development of unionism has been analyzed this article. Then, the prohibitions and restrictions about political activities of unions have been evaluated in our national legislation. Finally, the criteria concerning the use of “collective action right” which is defined as a fundamental right in international law have been evaluated, and it has been determined that the unions will be able to protect their members’ rights and interests by means of effective use of “collective action right”