Rights of Dismissed Employees: Severance and Notice Pay

Author: Att. Ahmet Bertuğ Dönmez Date: 9 October 20262 min read

The two questions employees most often ask when their employment ends are whether they are entitled to severance pay and to notice pay. The conditions and calculation of the two are different.

Severance pay

Severance pay is governed by Article 14 of Labour Law No. 1475, which remains in force. To be entitled, the employee must have worked for the same employer for at least one year and the contract must end for one of the reasons listed in the law. The main cases are:

• Termination by the employer for a reason other than breach of morality and good faith
• Termination by the employee for just cause (e.g. unpaid wages)
• A male employee leaving for compulsory military service
• A female employee leaving voluntarily within one year of marriage
• Leaving on retirement, or after meeting the retirement conditions other than age
• Death of the employee

It is calculated as 30 days' gross wage, including regular benefits, for each full year of service; periods of less than a year are counted pro rata. The severance pay ceiling announced for each period cannot be exceeded.

Notice pay

The party terminating an open-ended employment contract must give the other party prior notice. Notice periods are set by length of service in Article 17 of Labour Law No. 4857:

• Less than 6 months: 2 weeks
• 6 months – 1.5 years: 4 weeks
• 1.5 – 3 years: 6 weeks
• More than 3 years: 8 weeks

A party that does not observe the notice period pays notice compensation equal to the wages for that period.

Mediation first

For employee claims such as severance and notice pay, applying to a mediator before filing a lawsuit is mandatory; a case filed without mediation is dismissed on procedural grounds (Labour Courts Law No. 7036, Art. 3).

Limitation period

The limitation period for severance pay, annual leave pay and certain compensation claims is five years (Law No. 4857, Additional Art. 3).

Sources

• Labour Law No. 1475, Art. 14
• Labour Law No. 4857, Arts. 17, 24, Additional Art. 3
• Labour Courts Law No. 7036, Art. 3