Protection of Women Employees Before and After Childbirth in Turkish Employment Law

Turkey has recently been undergoing a period in which the laws have been changing rapidly to adapt legislation to European Union (EU) directives and International Labour Organization (ILO) standards. In this respect, the Employment Act, No. 4857/2003, attempted to introduce provisions parallel to EU regulations on the protection of employees who are pregnant, have just given birth or are breastfeeding. However, not only are there problems in the provisions of the Employment Act, but also in the situation of many women employees who are not covered by the Act and are subject to outdated legislation not complying with EU and international standards. In this paper, the situation of employees who are pregnant or have just given birth and are breastfeeding is analysed from a critical point of view, and possible solutions are proposed.