The General Directorate of Personnel and Principles of the General Secretariat of the Presidency notified YÖK that the income earned by civil servants from content production on the website, application development and platforms such as YouTube is within the scope of the 'trade ban' article of the Civil Servants Law No. 657.
In the letter prepared in response to YÖK's request for opinion, Article 28 of the Civil Servants Law titled "Prohibition of engaging in trade and other profitable activities" was reminded. Pursuant to the article, civil servants cannot engage in any activity that would require them to be considered merchants or tradesmen according to the Turkish Commercial Code, cannot take part in commercial and industrial institutions, cannot be commercial representatives or commercial representatives, or partners in collective companies or limited partners in limited companies.
'IT IS NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THE FACTS OF THE AGE'
Tuncay Cengiz, Chairman of the Civil Servants Union (DMS), made statements regarding the ban in question. Speaking to Cumhuriyet, Cengiz underlined that abuse of public office, conversion of public resources to personal benefit and activities that would create a conflict of interest with the duty should not be allowed; He stated that a complete ban on digital productions that take place outside of working hours, do not disrupt public duty, and have no connection with public duty is incompatible with the realities of the age.
'WE DO NOT WANT HIM TO HAVE TO GET A SECOND JOB'
Emphasizing that what really needs to be discussed is 'why the civil servant has to seek additional income', Cengiz said, "Rent, food, education, transportation and bill expenses are increasing day by day. The basis of our civil servants producing content, developing software or trying to earn income on digital platforms is often not the desire to earn more, but the struggle to survive in the face of the increasing cost of living. We do not want the civil servant to have to do a second job. We want the civil servant to be able to live humanely with the salary he receives. However, in an environment where the civil servant has to increase his income, his own labor "Imposing new bans on digital production, which he carries out with his knowledge and knowledge, is not a solution," he said.
'IT'S NOT JUST A PROHIBITION ISSUE'
As a union; Explaining that instead of imposing new bans on the labor of civil servants, they call for the Civil Servants Law to be reconsidered according to the conditions of the digital age, Cengiz said, "Activities carried out outside working hours should be clearly defined; activities that do not pose a conflict of interest with public duty should be allowed. Limits that will prevent the abuse of public institutions, public resources and the duty area of the civil servant should be clearly determined.
In addition, contradictions between tax obligations and civil service legislation should be resolved for civil servants who earn income from digital platforms. Software, education, culture, art, content and other digital production activities of civil servants should be re-evaluated in accordance with the requirements of the age. Because the world is rapidly moving towards the digital economy. Information, software, content and digital production are now becoming important elements of economic value. It is not possible for Turkey to remain outside this transformation.
Instead of telling the civil servant to 'produce', it is necessary to clearly regulate under what conditions he can produce and within what limits he can earn income. It should not be forgotten that the issue is not just a matter of prohibitions. "The real issue is to question why the civil servant is forced to seek additional income," he said.
