Government of Turkey to support employment and wages after earthquake

Turkey launched a temporary wage support scheme and banned layoffs in 10 cities to protect workers and companies from the financial impact of the strong earthquakes that have hit the country.

Under the new economic aid plan, employers whose workplaces suffered serious or moderate damage will benefit from aid to partially cover the salaries of workers whose working hours were reduced, reported the country’s Official Gazette.

A layoff ban was also introduced in 10 provinces covered by the state of emergency.

“People whose houses or businesses have been damaged are now looking for work outside the disaster zone (…) It is also necessary to offer incentives to companies that employ workers in the earthquake zone,” said economist Enver Erkan.

Urban Planning Minister Murat Kurum stated that 156,000 buildings with more than 500,000 apartments were destroyed or badly damaged.

According to business groups and economists, the quake could cost Turkey up to $100 billion to rebuild homes and infrastructure, and take one to two percentage points off economic growth this year.

In Turkey, 865,000 people are living in tents and 376,000 are in student residences and public boarding houses outside the earthquake zone, President Tayyip Erdogan declared.

Erdogan has promised a swift rebuilding effort but experts say it would be a recipe for another disaster if security measures are sacrificed in the rush to rebuild.