ILO and IOM unveil key findings to boost labour market recovery in earthquake-affected areas of Turkey

ANKARA (ILO News) – In a collaborative effort to assess the state of labour markets, gather critical insights, and provide guidance for ongoing recovery and reconstruction efforts in the wake of the devastating earthquakes that struck Turkey in February 2023, the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) presented the results of a major research project on 9 July 2024 in Ankara.

The initiative, supported by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, included a household survey conducted with technical support from IOM, as well as two other studies conducted by the ILO Office in Turkey, a tracking study and an enterprise survey.

The studies, which complement official public data with a particular focus on the qualitative aspects of the labour market in the earthquake-affected area, aim to provide an evidence base for developing sustainable, inclusive, rights-based and gender-sensitive recovery efforts.

The earthquakes affected eleven provinces, home to 15.8 million people including migrants and refugees, causing severe physical, economic, social and psychological damage. Recognizing the profound impact on labour markets in the earthquake-affected areas, the ILO and IOM Turkey joined forces to conduct a household survey conducted from November 2023 to April 2024 to assess the current situation and provide evidence-based guidance and policy recommendations to drive improvement. The survey assessed the living and working conditions of earthquake survivors in Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş and Malatya and revealed striking findings, such as a high displacement rate of 55.2 per cent in central Hatay. It also highlighted a significant increase in the inability of people in temporary shelters, especially in Adıyaman, to meet basic needs, which increased tenfold. Key findings of the study include a pronounced digital divide in temporary settlements with internet access rates as low as 2.6 percent in Adıyaman, a high rate of economic inactivity among the female population (over 70 percent in all provinces, peaking at 84.7 percent in Malatya), and high rates of job loss among women, reaching half of the female respondents in Hatay and Adıyaman. The study also identified a varying dependency on pension income (e.g. 39.3 percent severe/high dependency in Hatay compared to 18.4 percent in Adıyaman) indicating potential poverty and the need for additional social assistance and labor market activation for this group. Labor force participation in the 30-59 age group is also higher compared to the 15-29 age group. In terms of working conditions, overtime is most prevalent in Hatay (38.4 percent for women and 36.9 percent for men), and occupational safety and health problems are more common among men than women in all provinces (the highest rate for men is in Kahramanmaraş at 19.6 percent). The labor force participation rate is also very low for people with disabilities, with Kahramanmaraş showing the lowest rate at 1.1 percent.

The ILO conducted the “Tracking” study as a complementary study to the quantitative data generated through the household survey in order to provide in-depth qualitative data on the labour market experiences and social relations of earthquake survivors who migrated to Ankara and Adana. The study was designed with a special focus on psychosocial factors, with the aim of providing evidence to guide policy interventions for the decent integration of the displaced population into the labour market in the provinces to which they moved and their gradual return to the provinces they left. The lack of a trauma-informed work environment increased survivors’ anxiety in the workplace, bringing risks of occupational accidents, reduced productivity, and deteriorated well-being. Life and work practices in urban society that are different from traditional rural society make survivors feel frustrated and hopeless in a new socio-economic environment. Young women in particular were found to have adopted and used urban practices to move away from traditional gender roles in their previous rural environments, demonstrating that the effects of the post-earthquake migration process were experienced differently based on age and gender. The integration of earthquake survivors into local labor markets was closely linked to the strength of their social networks.

The Enterprise Survey assessed business recovery processes in Adıyaman, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş and Malatya following the earthquakes. The survey found that 16% of businesses had to relocate, and 60% temporarily closed their operations, with an average closure period of 60 days. Businesses mainly suffered from customer losses (71.2%), followed by supplier losses (57%), product losses (55.9%), and market share losses (54.6%). Revenue decreased by 32% in US dollars from 2022 to 2023. Employers provided various forms of support to workers following the earthquake. Meal assistance (by 35.2 employers), accommodation support (25.6%), part-time work arrangements (23.5%), and reduced working hours (20%) were reported as the most common forms of support in this regard. However, forms of support such as flexible working arrangements, personal development and stress management training, and workplace psychological counselling were less common, each offered by less than 10% of employers.

“We are still living with the devastating impact of last year’s earthquakes, which caused severe social, economic and environmental damage in the region and had significant impacts on people’s livelihoods. Promoting decent work and social justice as key drivers of resilience building is urgently needed. Reliable, up-to-date and comprehensive evidence to guide recovery processes is crucial to designing social and economic recovery alongside physical reconstruction,” said Yasser Hassan, Director of the ILO Office in Turkey.

Gerard Karl-White, IOM Chief of Mission in Turkey: “While significant progress has been made, much work remains to improve access to employment opportunities, which impacts access to food, shelter and other basic needs. It is crucial that these findings inform effective policymaking in line with the 12th Development Agenda. This event is a call to action, urging contributions to innovative solutions and underscoring the critical importance of translating this data into concrete steps for recovery.”

Liam McLaughlin, Migration Counsellor at the British Embassy: “The data and insights from these studies are crucial to understanding the impact of the earthquakes on employment and guiding our recovery efforts. The collaboration between the ILO and IOM, with the support of the Turkish government, is pivotal to this process.”

Shane Neil O’Higgins, ILO Senior Research Specialist: “We prioritize vulnerable groups in our comprehensive studies. This study gave us an opportunity to analyze living and working conditions in earthquake-affected areas. The findings provide key insights for reconstruction efforts with a focus on social justice, highlighting the different impacts on different communities.”

Speakers also highlighted the importance of evidence-based policymaking derived from these studies. There was a clear focus on the impact of earthquakes on women and vulnerable groups. Speakers called for translating research findings into actionable steps and encouraged innovative solutions. They stressed the importance of collaboration between local and international stakeholders to support government-led recovery efforts.

The reports will be finalized based on contributions from all stakeholders and will be available in the coming days.

For media inquiries, please contact:

International Labour Organization, Ezgi Gungor, Communications and Advocacy Officer ([email protected])

IOM: Miko Alazas, Media and Communications Officer ([email protected])

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