Measures to clarify the requirements around remote working in Turkey feature in a regulation effective 10 Mar 2021, and include procedures, health and safety considerations, the provision of necessary equipment, and jobs that cannot be performed remotely. 

Highlights

• Remote working. Employees can be hired to work remotely, either wholly or partly, or they can submit a written request to their employer to change to remote working, or to reverse their decision. Employers must respond within 30 days and evaluate such requests in line with workplace procedures.
  
• Working conditions. Employment contracts must specify the arrangements for remote working, including duration; the place of work; working time; salary; expenses that will be reimbursed; data protection rules; the equipment to be provided by the employer; the employee’s duty to take appropriate care of the equipment; how the employer will communicate; and any special working provisions. The employer and remote worker can agree to changes in working hours, including overtime work.
  
• Arrangement of the remote work space. The employer and remote worker must agree on the costs involved to arrange the employee’s workspace and enable remote working; any changes should be completed prior to the start of remote work.
  
• Supply of equipment. The employer must provide a list of the necessary equipment and tools and their costs to the remote worker; a copy of the equipment list must be signed by the employee and retained in the employee’s personnel file.
  
• Roles that cannot be worked remotely. Jobs involving hazardous chemicals, radioactive materials or exposure to biological agents cannot be performed remotely. Certain jobs that have national strategic importance also are excluded. 

Related resource

• Regulation on remote working (Turkish) (Turkish official gazette, 10 Mar 2021)