Workplace harassment reporting in Türkiye: a safe internal channel and where to complain

What is mobbing, and why should a report be in writing?

The word “mobbing” does not appear in the statute. Article 417 of the Turkish Code of Obligations requires the employer to take the necessary measures so that employees are not subjected to psychological and sexual harassment and that those who have been do not suffer further harm. In practice, systematic intimidation, exclusion and humiliation — what is called mobbing — is discussed within this scope.

A written, dated report matters for both sides. Labour Law Article 24/II-d lists, among the employee’s grounds for justified termination, the employee being sexually harassed at work by another employee or third parties and the necessary measures not being taken despite reporting it to the employer. When the report was made and what the employer did are the first questions asked later.

The employer’s duty: Code of Obligations Art. 417 and the Labour Law

• Protecting personality (Code of Obligations Art. 417). The employer must protect and respect the employee’s personality, maintain an order consistent with good faith at the workplace, prevent psychological and sexual harassment and take measures so that a harassed employee does not suffer further harm.
• Compensation. The same article states that compensation for damage linked to the violation of personality rights caused by the employer’s breach of law or contract is subject to the rules of contractual liability.
• Equal treatment (Labour Law Art. 5). In the employment relationship no discrimination may be made on grounds such as language, race, colour, sex, disability, political opinion, philosophical belief, religion and sect.
• Justified termination (Labour Law Art. 24/II). The employer’s words or conduct offending the employee’s honour and dignity or the employer’s sexual harassment, and the employee being sexually harassed by another employee or third parties with no measures taken despite reporting it, are among the listed grounds.

A reporting channel is a tool for this duty, not a substitute for it: the employer runs the investigation and decides the outcome.

How to set up an ethics reporting channel

For an employee to be able to tell what happened, the channel must be both reachable and safe. What to look for in an ethics reporting channel:

• Who investigates is clear from the start. Review rights are kept narrow (e.g. senior management and HR); because a large share of allegations concern managers, the right is not opened to all managers by default.
• Conflicts of interest are closed. If the accused person is among the reviewers, the reporter should be able to exclude them; the excluded person should not see the report or be notified.
• An anonymous option with honest limits. In an anonymous report the identity should not be recorded; what anonymity does and does not provide should be stated plainly on screen.
• Followability. An anonymous reporter should also be able to see replies and add information; the way to do this is a one-time tracking code.
• Content-free notices. The notification or e-mail sent to a reviewer should not carry the content of the event; the content is read only on the authorised person’s screen.
• A tamper-evident record. The report itself and every step (seen, internal note, reply, status, outcome) should be recorded in a way that cannot be changed afterwards.
• External routes shown without conditions. The channel must not be a precondition for the employee using routes outside the company.

Anonymous reporting: what it provides, where its limits are

Anonymity is a promise, and the limits of that promise should be stated clearly. Otherwise the employee exposes themselves at the very moment they believe they are protected.

Writing down the limits does not weaken anonymity; it lets the employee decide knowingly what to share.

A report’s description may contain special categories of personal data such as health, sex life or religion. The Personal Data Protection Law No. 6698 gives these data separate protection; access should therefore be limited to the reviewers, and reports should not be written to general activity logs.

What does the company do when a report arrives?

• Record it as seen. The first opening is recorded; the reporter knows the report was seen (not who saw it).
• Check whether protection is needed. If the conduct is ongoing or there is danger, act without waiting; in imminent danger, 112.
• Investigate independently. The accused person does not take part in the investigation; witnesses and documents are heard and collected with confidentiality in mind.
• Separate internal notes from replies to the reporter. Investigation notes are not shown to the reporter; the reply to the reporter is written separately.
• Close with a reasoned outcome. When marked “concluded”, a summary of the outcome is written and sent to the reporter.
• Prevent retaliation. Adverse action against an employee for a report made in good faith is incompatible with the employer’s protective duty under Code of Obligations Art. 417; state this plainly in your policy.

Where to complain about mobbing: routes outside the company

The internal channel can be a first step but it is not the only route. The employee may use the following without first reporting internally:

Before steps that may lead to consequences such as justified termination or compensation, talk to a lawyer; the assessment is the court’s.

Checklist for employees

• Write down each incident on the day, with date, time, place and any witnesses.
• Keep documents such as messages, e-mails and work assignments.
• Use the company’s reporting channel; for an anonymous report, store the tracking code somewhere safe.
• If you get no result, use the external routes; in imminent danger, 112.
• If you are considering resigning, talk to a lawyer or a bar association legal aid office before deciding.

In our workforce management system, “Safe Report” in the employee panel is on in every company: bullying (mobbing), sexual harassment, discrimination, violence, workplace safety and ethics breaches can be reported; if anonymous is chosen, no identity is recorded, no IP address is kept, time is stored only as the day and replies are followed with a tracking code. The reporter chooses which reviewers must not see it; in the Ethics Reports inbox, seen by Admin and HR by default, every step is added to a tamper-evident record. More: features on in every company.

This guide is for information only and is not legal or payroll advice. In a specific dispute consult a lawyer; your collective agreement or employment contract may contain additional terms.