Unconscionable price hike on the Constitutional Court's agenda

Seyfettin Çilesiz, an Honorary Member of the Supreme Court of Appeals, who previously filed a lawsuit against the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), applied to the Constitutional Court to halt the execution of the salary raise decision announced by the board for 2026 and 2027. Çilesiz stated that while legal action is not available for arbitration awards, the right to individual appeal to the Constitutional Court remains open. If the Constitutional Court overturns the decision, they will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights. Çilesiz's lawyer, Ali Erdem Gündoğan, said, "The file is before the Constitutional Court. If the Constitutional Court accepts the application, the increase's execution will be halted, and the Turkish Grand National Assembly will be forced to take action for a higher raise." In his petition, Çilesiz stated that the board's decision violates six separate articles of the Constitution.

UNCONSTITUTIONAL

"A raise below inflation is clearly unconstitutional," it was stated. In addition to demanding a halt to the referee raise, Çilesiz also requested a symbolic 10 lira in compensation for the "rights violation."

The raise rates requested to be cancelled

The government offered civil servants and retirees a raise of 11% + 7% for 2026 and 4% + 4% for 2027 at the collective bargaining table. The civil servant refused the raise and left the table. Following the disagreement, the Public Arbitration Board intervened and announced a one-point increase: 11% + 7% for 2026 and 5% + 4% for 2027. Çilesiz appealed to the Constitutional Court, claiming these raises were unconstitutional.