Eğitim-İş union challenges Ministry of National Education over MESEM accident data

The Eğitim-İş labor union has criticized the Turkish Ministry of National Education (MEB) over contradictory data regarding workplace accidents and child fatalities within Vocational Training Centers (MESEM).

According to union statements, the Ministry provided two different sets of figures to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey within a three-month period. In a response dated June 23, 2026, the Ministry reported 3,080 workplace accidents and 13 child deaths occurring since the program's inception in 2016. However, in a subsequent response on September 3, 2026, the Ministry stated that 9,950 accidents and 37 child deaths had occurred during the 2025 and 2026 period alone.

Eğitim-İş President Kadem Özbay argued that these discrepancies suggest either an attempt to obscure the truth or a lack of effective oversight. The union claims the MESEM model facilitates child labor by placing students in insecure working conditions, asserting that the statistical gap implies over 6,000 accidents and 24 additional deaths occurred in just three months.