Source: Birleşik Metal-İş unionisation efforts at the workplace. As BMIS’s lawsuits related to the competence procedure continued, it was unable to conduct to Baldur Workers in front of Mercedes Workplace at collective bargaining at this workplace. A BMIS specialist recalls Germany] - “Solidarity is the words of the company’s lawyer: “Your friends [workers] our strength!” decided to organise themselves in your union [BMIS], but human resource managers has chosen Turkish-Metal unionisation.” This is a striking example of the lack of awareness regarding the right to freedom of association in Turkey among jurists. Sendikası - [Solidarity demo of German workers Source: Birleşik Metal-İş Sendikası - [BMİS Baldur protest] Source: Evrensel - Operating in the Şekerpınar Organised Industrial Zone as part of an investment of the Spanish company MBHA, Baldur Suspension Factory produces leaf springs for trucks. It is one of the suppliers of Mercedes. While the Birleşik-Metal-İş Union (BMIS) pursued its unionisation efforts at the workplace and applied to the Ministry of Labour for a competency certificate on December 21, 2016, three workers were dismissed. In the following days, dismissals continued eventually reaching a total of seven dismissed workers. Moreover, the human resources manager of the factory began exerting pressure on the workers to resign from the Union, claiming that the factory’s customers would cancel their orders if the Union would be given the competence certificate. In the meantime, an objection was made to the Union’s request for the competence certificate, postponing the collective bargaining process. Subsequently, the employer enabled rival Türk-Metal’s [BMİS Baldur protest] 52 C O L L E C T I V E R I G H T S O F W O R K E R S U N D E R T U R K E Y ’ S C O N T I N U O U S S TAT E O F E M E R G E N C Y T R A D E U N I O N R I G H T S I N E U R O P E A N A N D E U R O P E A N - A F F I L I AT E D E N T E R P R I S E S The collective labour agreement competency case filed by BMIS in Baldur recently ended,48 granting the union competency for collective labour agreements in the workplace. Although Türk-Metal has not yet signed a collective labour agreement in the workplace, it provides some kind of recognition through the protocol it has signed with the employer. The employer expresses its preference and attempts to direct workers by including notices for this Türk-Metal into the items it distributes to the workers as promotions etc. Meanwhile, BMIS, which finally obtained a certificate of competency after 4 years, has seen declining membership in the workplace. It was also in a reorganisation effort, trying to reach the required number of members in order to make collective labour agreements. Having received the competency authorization document by Ministry, BMIS presented a draft agreement in October 2020, calling the management for the collective labour bargaining. While waiting for a response to this call, three new members of BMIS were dismissed on grounds including, “threat, tease and insult to their colleagues.”49 48 Decision of the 9th Civil Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals, File No: 2020/1484, Decision No: 2020/6245 Date: 13.02.2020 49 https://www.evrensel.net/haber/417798/baldur-suspansiyon-fabrikasinda-birlesik-metal-iste-orgutlenen-3-isci-isten-atildi E X A M P L E S O F C O L L E C T I V E L A B O U R R I G H T S V I O L AT I O N S I N E U R O P E A N I N V E S T M E N T E N T E R P R I S E S 53