Schools are cutting back on hygiene: a scabies outbreak has started! What is the situation in Alanya?
As part of the government's announced austerity measures, one of the areas facing cuts is cleaning and hygiene. It has been claimed that a scabies outbreak has started due to pollution in Istanbul. Concerned by the news, parents in Alanya began to investigate whether such a situation exists in their area.
The new academic year, which began on September 9 across Turkey, has brought various issues. School administrators, trying to address the inadequacies of the Ministry of Education's new "Workforce Adaptation Program" through parents and school associations, have faced claims of a scabies outbreak due to hygiene deficiencies.
PARENTS IN ALANYA ARE ANXIOUS
Seeing reports in the national media, parents in Alanya started to wonder whether there is such a risk in their city. Awaiting statements from the authorities, parents began to inquire whether there are schools with inadequate hygiene and insufficient staff, and if so, what solutions can be found.
NOBODY IS LOOKING AT İŞKUR'S ANNOUNCEMENTS
The first collaboration under the "Workforce Adaptation Program" (İUP) was made with the Ministry of Education (MEB). Previously, MEB was also employing cleaning and security personnel through İŞKUR's "Programs for the Benefit of Society" (TYP). Personnel assigned under İUP will work 5 days a week for the first month and then 3 days a week. They will receive a daily "pocket money" of 566.73 Lira and can participate in the program for a maximum of 140 actual days, only benefiting from general health insurance. This means that the working period of these personnel will not count toward retirement.
WORKING IN İUP IS ESSENTIALLY MODERN SLAVERY
The İUP, which is claimed to be implemented to combat unemployment, evokes the government's austerity measures due to insecure working conditions and limited financial benefits. MEB announced that it will hire 120,000 İUP personnel this year in 81 provinces, but Eğitim-Bir-Sen General President Ali Yalçın stated that İUP is not popular due to the lack of job security, inadequate and unfair income, and absence of social security. As a result, in some schools, it was reported that school administrators handled classroom cleaning during the first week.
"WE HAVE A SERIOUS STAFF SHORTAGE"
Many unions are calling on MEB due to hygiene issues in schools and staff shortages. Türk Eğitim Sen states, "We have a very serious shortage of auxiliary staff." They question, "Will the government intervene when you tell school administrators, 'The shortfall above 8,000 Lira will be covered from the school family association accounts'?" A teacher working in a public school explained that their school still hasn't employed security personnel due to inadequate wages: "The school administration said, 'Okay, let him come for 8,000 Lira; we'll pay his insurance and give him additional payments.' But they rejected that, saying, 'You cannot pay our insurance.' That's why we currently have no security personnel".
"NOBODY WILL WORK IN THIS SLAVERY SYSTEM"
Highlighting the exploitation of labor in this practice, Eğitim-Sen stated: "The Minister of Labor announced that there were 359,000 applications for İUP, two-thirds of which (268,000 people) are women. This practice, implemented by the government to show a lower unemployment rate and to employ cheap labor in schools, especially women's labor, literally means modern slavery. The large number of women among the applicants shows that the government has placed flexible and insecure employment policies for women at the center of its long-standing agenda for work-life balance. While opportunities for women for permanent and secure employment are being limited, flexible and insecure working conditions are pushing women out of the public sphere, and the working life is being designed with a sexist understanding".
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION SEEKS SOLUTION FROM PARENTS
Ataşehir 100. Year Cumhuriyet Anadolu Lisesi requested 500 Lira from parents at the beginning of the semester, citing the lack of cleaning staff. In a letter sent to parents, the school administration stated: "We have encountered a deadlock. In discussions with the cleaning company, the price for 5 part-time staff is quoted between 75,000 and 80,000 Lira. This price does not include VAT. Since we have found ourselves in a deadlock, we wanted to inform you".
COMPLAINT FILED AGAINST MINISTER TEKİN
Eğitim-İş members also stated that the responsible party is Minister of Education Yusuf Tekin and filed a complaint against him. During a statement in front of the ministry, Union President Kamer Özbay said, "Teachers are trying to clean their schools with brooms and dustpans along with their students".
SCABIES OUTBREAK IN STATE SCHOOL
The cleaning crisis has reached such a level that, according to a parent residing in Istanbul, a scabies outbreak has started in the state primary school attended by their child. Emphasizing the lack of cleaning staff in the school, the parent mentioned that they are considering cleaning the classrooms themselves.
HIGH DEMAND IN ŞANLIURFA: "I'LL WORK IN PLACE OF MY WIFE"
CHP Şanlıurfa MP Mahmut Tanal noted that many people have applied for İUP, stating, "Citizens who can't find work are in need of 6,792 Lira a month. The demand is so high that many people from the same family are entering the lottery. Some come to school directors and offer, 'I'll work in place of my daughter, my wife.' It's hard not to feel despair. When did Turkey become like this? Even in wartime, our people were not in such a situation." Mustafa Kutlu, president of the Eğitim Gücü Union's Şanlıurfa branch and a psychological counselor, shared photos of dirty classrooms in a school in the Haliliye district, stating that there is no cleaning personnel. Parents, school administrators, and teachers all complain about the treatment of students. Unions are highlighting labor exploitation in İUP, while the Ministry of Education remains unresponsive to the rising voices.
THE ISSUE ON PARLIAMENT'S AGENDA
Meanwhile, Future Party Istanbul MP İsa Mesih Şahin brought the issue to the agenda of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. He submitted a question proposal for Minister Yusuf Tekin to respond to, asking: "Is there a connection between the issue of low wages for cleaning staff in state schools and austerity measures?", "How many complaints regarding the cleaning staff issue have reached your ministry from schools and parents?", and "Is there any new planning being considered by your ministry to address the shortage of cleaning staff in schools?"
