Unemployment Insurance Fund shifts resources toward employer incentives

A report by the Confederation of Revolutionary Workers' Unions Research Center (DİSK-AR) indicates that Turkey’s Unemployment Insurance Fund has shifted its primary focus from supporting unemployed workers to providing incentives for employers.

Based on İŞKUR data covering the period from 2016 to July 2026, the share of fund expenditures allocated to unemployment payments decreased from 37.4% in 2016 to 31% in the first seven months of 2026. Conversely, the share of direct and indirect employer incentives and on-the-job training programs rose from 20.3% to 44.3% during the same period.

Between 2023 and July 2026, the fund's total expenditure reached 756 billion TL. Of this amount, 390.2 billion TL (51.6%) was directed toward employer incentives and training programs, while only 215.6 billion TL (28.5%) was paid out as unemployment benefits to workers.