When employment is mentioned in Turkey, the first institution that comes to mind is the Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR). Since its establishment, İŞKUR has played a role in employing thousands of people across many sectors and continues its work today. As unemployment rises, applications to İŞKUR have also increased. İŞKUR offers a variety of programs to support employment, including the On-the-Job Training Program, Incentives for the Employment of Persons with Disabilities, and the Reintegration of Former Convicts into Working Life. In recent years, İŞKUR has also intensified efforts to address youth unemployment by financially incentivizing companies to hire new graduates and offering internship programs that provide university students and recent graduates with valuable work experience. Before listing İŞKUR branch details, here is a brief overview of the services and opportunities İŞKUR provides.
İŞKUR and the Services It Provides
İŞKUR helps find workplaces for university students’ mandatory internships. Through the On-the-Job Training Program, İŞKUR enables people aged 15 to 77 to gain hands-on experience while learning at the workplace, addressing the common barrier of lack of experience. İŞKUR recently announced plans to increase its workforce: with over 8,000 employees currently, it aimed to expand to 12,000 personnel within 2017 and requested additional staff allocations from the Ministry of Finance to achieve this. Increasing staff across institutions affiliated with İŞKUR was also encouraged. These measures are intended to reduce unemployment and improve overall welfare.
In addition to these programs, İŞKUR runs incentive schemes specifically designed to promote the employment of people with disabilities and former convicts—groups for whom participation in working life is crucial. İŞKUR’s programs support disabled individuals’ continued livelihood, social participation, and workplace inclusion. The Disabled Projects and Incentives launched in 2016 directed many public and private institutions to recruit disabled staff, playing a significant role in increasing employment opportunities for this group. İŞKUR has stated that administrative fines collected from employers who do not hire people with disabilities or former convicts are allocated to vocational training and rehabilitation for disabled individuals, workplace adaptation measures, and projects that support disabled people in starting their own businesses. Through these incentive and support projects, İŞKUR has helped institutions open positions for many disabled individuals and facilitated the employment of former convicts.
İŞKUR Branches and Addresses
The importance of İŞKUR for people living in Turkey is clear from the services described above. Citizens also contact İŞKUR for matters such as social security procedures and workplace safety, so access to branch addresses, phone numbers, and email information is essential. Many services connected to İŞKUR can be completed via its official website or through the e-Government (E-Devlet) portal. However, certain applications require in-person submission: for example, if you apply as a person with a disability or as a former convict, you must deliver the medical report that documents the disability or the official document related to your conviction to an İŞKUR branch in person. Likewise, petitions and other supporting documents often need to be submitted directly at a branch.
You can view all İŞKUR branches by following the link provided at the end of this article. İŞKUR has branches across the country. By visiting the link below, you can find the email, phone and address details for the İŞKUR branch in your province.