Civil servants are entitled to various types of leave during their employment. Understanding how much leave for legitimate reasons they may use and under what conditions is important. In this article, we examine the situations and durations in which civil servants can take leave for justified reasons.
The leave rights of civil servants are defined by law. Under Law No. 657 on Civil Servants, employees are allowed to take leave for justified reasons without affecting their financial or social rights. Except for payments directly tied to actual work, a civil servant’s salary and other social rights are preserved while taking such leave, meaning they may use these leaves without salary deductions.
The provisions governing justified leave are set out in Article 104 of Law No. 657. Paragraph (A) of Article 104 addresses maternity-related leave. Paragraph (B) covers paternity leave and leave due to bereavement. These specific leaves are not subject to discretionary approval by the appointing authority. Paragraph (C) of Article 104 provides for leave situations that are not specified elsewhere in the article.
Justified leaves are granted with the approval of the provincial governor (vali) or district governor (kaymakam). Before granting approval, the governor or district governor obtains the consent of the head of the institution where the civil servant works. The governor or district governor does not unilaterally authorize the leave without that institutional approval.
Reasons for leave up to 10 days are not exhaustively listed in Law No. 657; these shorter leave requests are left to the discretion of the employee’s supervisor. The supervisor evaluates the written request and supporting reason submitted by the civil servant and decides whether to approve the leave.
Civil servants may be granted up to 10 days of leave for justified reasons. After using that leave, they may be granted an additional 10 days for continued justified reasons; however, this second 10-day period is deducted from the employee’s annual leave. Teachers are excluded from this additional 10-day leave right.
It is important to know the specific durations allowed for different circumstances. Female civil servants are entitled to maternity leave of 8 weeks before birth and 8 weeks after birth, totaling 16 weeks. In the case of multiple pregnancy, an additional 2 weeks are added to these periods. If a birth occurs prematurely, any unused prenatal leave is transferred to the postnatal period. A civil servant whose spouse gives birth is entitled to 10 days of leave.
If the mother dies during childbirth or within the maternity leave period, upon request the civil servant father may be granted the same amount of leave that would have been given to the mother.
After the maternity leave period ends, a female civil servant with a child is entitled to nursing breaks: three hours per day during the first six months and one and a half hours per day during the second six months.
A civil servant whose spouse or child dies is granted 7 days of bereavement leave. Similarly, 7 days of leave are provided if the civil servant’s spouse or the civil servant’s parent or sibling dies.
For other justified reasons—outside birth, child care, marriage, or death—a civil servant may be granted up to 10 days of leave.
If a civil servant has a child who is at least 70% disabled or who becomes ill, and a medical report is provided, the civil servant may be granted up to 10 days of leave within a one-year period, either all at once or in separate portions. If both parents are civil servants, only one parent may use this leave at the same time.