Turkey imposes temporary wage support plan, bans layoffs

The Turkish army's UN forces walked amomg collapsed buildings a day after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the region, in the coastal city of Samandag on February 21, 2023. PHOTO AFP ANKARA - T rkiye instituted a temporary wage support plan and banned layoffs in 10 cities on Wednesday to protect workers and businesses from the financial impact of the massive earthquakes that hit the south of the country earlier this month.

The moves are part of the Turkish government's efforts to minimize the economic impact of T rkiye's worst earthquake in modern history, which left tens of thousands dead.

The country's official gazette said that employers whose workplaces were heavily or moderately damaged would benefit from a support to partially cover wages of workers whose hours had been cut.

READ MORE: More than 1,700 dead as a major earthquake hits T rkiye, Syria

A ban on layoffs was introduced in 10 provinces that have been affected by a state of emergency.

The state of emergency was imposed on Feb 7 by the Turkish Parliament after President Tayyip Erdogan demanded it for three months.

In an effort to mitigate the economic blow from COVID 19 the government also offered salary support and imposed a layoff ban in 2020.

READ MORE: T rkiye clears away rubble from quake, rescue efforts wind down.

Business groups and economists said the earthquake could cost Ankara up to $100 billion to rebuild housing and infrastructure and shave one to two percentage points off economic growth this year.