labour movements and unionist activities in ottoman İstanbul and anatolia-1870-1923

110
INTRODUCTION The Ottoman Empire have entered into an era that many unfavorable developments on political area caused weakening of the Empire in 19 th and 20 th centuries. The financial corruption on the system has naturally followed them. The unsustainable economy brought the social reactions and resistance against the order. The one of the strange reactions was the movements of the working group in modern sense towards the end of the nineteenth century and the final years of the Empire in twentieth century. The concept of worker has not yet located on the Ottomans’ minds, but the newly emerging proletariat groups could show their negative treatments to the state and the company owners. The life of the workers was becoming harder in 1800s and1900s, because the macro political developments consumed the financial resources and its whole impacts directly reflected on the ordinary Ottoman citizens. There was a long lived tradition for the working people on the classical period that was the guild system was at the 1

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Page 1: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

INTRODUCTION

The Ottoman Empire have entered into an era that many unfavorable

developments on political area caused weakening of the Empire in 19 th and 20th

centuries. The financial corruption on the system has naturally followed them. The

unsustainable economy brought the social reactions and resistance against the order.

The one of the strange reactions was the movements of the working group in modern

sense towards the end of the nineteenth century and the final years of the Empire in

twentieth century. The concept of worker has not yet located on the Ottomans’ minds,

but the newly emerging proletariat groups could show their negative treatments to the

state and the company owners.

The life of the workers was becoming harder in 1800s and1900s, because the

macro political developments consumed the financial resources and its whole impacts

directly reflected on the ordinary Ottoman citizens. There was a long lived tradition for

the working people on the classical period that was the guild system was at the center of

the controlling mechanism. However, the inadequate agriculture pushed the lower class

to migrate into the cities that was offering new job opportunities. The new comers had

to work in the state or foreigners’ factories or mines. In short time, primitive industrial

manufacturing and transportation sectors needed for the Ottoman Empire and

dependently more labor force. Nevertheless, the workers never found neither their

expected wages nor working condition and even wanted life.

By the time, they began to be smashed under the companies of greed bosses or

the state itself. The laborers had to bare their inhumane conditions, so primarily the

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machine breaking and later the strikes were the ways of demonstration of their unrests.

The problems of them were not closely dealt with the administrators, too. Since, the

governors tried to watch for their or their foreign partners interests. The demands of the

newly appearing units were not cared by the capitalist system; their big or small

attempts were even perceived as a rebellion or an act of breaking the present order.

While capitalist economy evolving into the Empire by considering not welfare of

the Ottomans, the proletariat class added new acts to their unrests by making

protestations, strikes and by writing petitions to the Sultan or the ministries. Apart from

the movements, organizational occupations of the labor force did make an effort to

occur in the same time periods. Those who had not experiences about the concept of

modern labor unions shaped several unionists organizations among little groups. Both in

term of the labor movements and the unions the Balkan territories of the Empire had

more chance, because of their proximity to the European continent that have become the

cradle of actions the proletariat class. Also, the labor units in the Balkans have been

watching the socialist developments that have interested them nearly. That’s why, the

other parts of the Ottoman Empire, such as Anatolia and Middle East remained so

weedy for the purpose of the mentioned attempts and the trade unions. Although, there

exited some working strikes in Egypt and Palestine, they were never effective as much

as the examples in the European parts of the state. As a capital city, İstanbul had

inspired the labor actions form there, at least ideological terms.

The workers’ uprisings and the unionist developments in İstanbul and Anatolia

have been distinguishing from one in the Balkans. The events towards the end of the

nineteenth and first decades of the twentieth centuries slowly, but linearly brought in

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new experiments for the next generations workers. Therefore, this study consists of

overall the labor movements and unionist activities in İstanbul and Anatolia of the

Ottoman Empire at between 1870 and 1923. A general survey over the little or big

strikes, demonstrations and the trade unions is the method of it. To look at, the reasons

behind them and their results are tried to be laid off as well as the features and natures

of the activities. However, it is not helpful to focus on each of the strikes; it can be

logical to demonstrate the cases that could have stood out with their influences.

Just before evaluate those modern times’ actions in the Ottoman Empire, it will

be very useful to draw the political and the economical evolution of the Ottoman

Empire in the mentioned years. This is the first part of the study that should make a

sense about the general conditions in the Empire. Then, the conditions of the workers

will try to be outlined in the second chapter. First of all, the perception of worker within

the Ottoman society can be illustrated; ethnic structures, income issues, life standards,

working conditions and the social rights of this newly appearing class take place on this

chapter, too. As soon as possible, some examples about the issue will be given.

The main field of study starts with the third chapter in which there will be three

periodical divided subtitles. To have an overview on the movements of the workers

until 1870, some primitive instances of them as determined as will be located under the

first subtitle. The background of the acts can be extended further of fourteenth century

even more beyond, but in order not to estrange the study so much, some elected cases

among them will be on the consider. The primarily precedent event have found in the

1500s; but, it should be noted that neither the Ottoman society had a distinct labor class

nor the workers on those centuries had the concept of class consciousness. It was so

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early to see that logic on the people. Besides it, some benevolence occupations caring

the workers before 1870 were too insufficient to respond the real needs of the labor

force.

The other subtitle will cover the movements from 1870 till the Young Turks’

revolutions in 1908 and moreover the first serious unionist attempts will be interested.

The strike of the Post Office workers in İstanbul was the initiative actions in the

Ottoman Empire. After that event, the workers in several sectors staged act of leaving

jobs. When the Abdülhamid II absolutism began to progress, the workers chose the way

of that they write petitions to the competent departments before the strikes in general. In

these years the transportation sector had great place among the movements and the trade

unions began to show their presence in spite of the fact that they could not widespread

whole Anatolia and İstanbul. The Ottoman Workers Society set up in 1891 was the most

significant unionist work, but it could only last to exist a year. Again the workers of the

Ottoman Empire in İstanbul and Anatolia were still distant from the embodying grand

designs of strikes or trade unions at those times.

The most predominantly arrangement of the study will be evaluated in the third

subtitle that contains the movements after 1908 until the collapse of the Empire and the

establishment of Turkey in 1923. Especially, the year 1908 became the strike year alone

in which the workers ordered huge numbers of strikes on the several sides of the

Anatolia and İstanbul. It was obvious that the deposition of Abdülhamid II with a

revolution affected whole laborers desiring more freedom from the bosses. Even during

the Independency and Republican years the laborers could serve many movements

against the state and private companies. The trade unions could spread over different

sectors in İstanbul or elsewhere. The class consciousness was more nearby to be have,

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the socialist tendency among the workers increased in that period. The breeziest times

of the labor movements and unionist activities were those years.

As the result of the study, it will be gained the overall information about the

labor movements in the modern times of the Ottoman Empires. The courses of them

might or can be compared with ones in the other parts of the world if it is needed. The

general estimation about the Ottoman working class that had composed the essence of

the laborers in Turkey would become possible. The developments and the changes on

the labor actions in later periods can be seen very well at the end of the study

1-THE POLITICO-ECONOMIC CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE

OTTOMAN EMPIRE in 19th CENTURY UNTIL 1923

The nineteenth century, for the Ottoman Empire that had controlled huge

amounts of lands for centuries became a transformation or transition period which tried

to renovate its old and not well functioning institutions based on the modern world’s

needs; in more deeply the corruption and collapse era in the beginning of twentieth

century. The fails at the battlefields within a single hundred of years and the WWI

caused the final failure of the whole attempts to recover the Empire. Also, it reasoned

the birth of a new state from the hearts of Ottoman Empire, Anatolia with the

foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. The political and economical

developments on these years that prepared its end demonstrated a steady and non-

returnable decline and badness, unfortunately.

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The reforms of the Selim III had been cut off by internal reactions and this sense

passed through the Mahmut II who was more “successful” and able reformer in 1808.1

Mahmut II’s one of the greatest works was to abolish the Janissary Corps in June of

1826 which had been the most strict opposition center towards the reforms like an

events in his predecessor before.2 The Ottoman Empire tried to extend his reforms to

control the bureaucratic work up elsewhere with a more regular and effective ways.

Alongside the internal reforms, the Empire had to cope with the minority rebels

such as the examples of the Greeks, Serbians and even the Egyptian governors and the

wars against Russia for a long while. In 1829, the Treaty of Edirne was signed between

the Ottomans and the Russians as a result of the defeat of the Turkish troops that had

been exposed a primitive series of renovations.3

The traditional economic patterns of the state was being reshaped from starting

the mostly the commerce according to the new capitalist world system. In the 19 th

century, the financial portrait of the Ottoman Empire can be outlined in four basic

stages; the first one was started with Selim III’s era and ended up the events in 1826

which has been intended to emphasizing monopolies and domestic use of the raw

materials. The next stage can be drawn as the involving years between 1826 and 1860

on which the free-trade liberalism in the mainland and the dependently new concepts on

the economic life. Then, the following years until 1908 preoccupied the other one on

that the Ottoman ruling class tried to restore and protect the local manufacturing

meanwhile the foreign investments on several areas were supplied and enlarged. The

1 Shaw, Stanford J. and Ezel Kural, The History of Ottoman Empire and the Modern Turkey 1808-1975, Cambridge University Press, New York 1995, p.12 Mantran, Robert, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu Tarihi-II(XIX. YY. Başlarından Yıkılışa), trans. by Server Tanilli, v:2, Adam Yayınları, İstanbul 2002, p.37(3 Akşin, Sina ,Türkiye Tarihi, v.III, Cem Yayınevi, İstanbul 1980, p.81-82

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forth one was the really hard years for the state from 1908 to 1918 which was the era of

the final corruption and disintegration of the finance.4 The transformation of the

Ottoman economy was nearly completed at the same time.

The Ministries and the councils in different fields were founded to manage

important affairs concerning the state itself during Mahmud II and his successors’

rulerships. The central government was considered to strengthen by the help of

contributing military, religious, justice and educational administrations in more

capacities. 5 Besides that Mahmut’s era witnessed to obvious of the efficiency on the

guild system in terms of market economy, at least it can be said that the diminishing the

power of it began to be felt. The provincial elites started to take active role on

controlling the economical main sources at that time.

In the years of that invasion of Algerian province staged by the French troops in

1820s and 30s, the Ottoman Empire had to sign the Anglo Turkish Treaty (Balta

Limanı) with Britain in 1838 which have given lots of commercial and financial

privileges in returns for the British support on the international area, that made the

Ottoman economy more falling dawn by subsequently added capitulations, afterwards

the Hünkar İskelesi with Russia five years ago. The rest of years of Mahmut II’s era

were driven by reformatory attempts in spite of the Egyptian rebels. However, the

health condition of the Sultan happened worse and he died in 1839; immediately, his

son Abdülmecid sat on the throne. He was determined and brave on the continuation of

the reforms.6

4 Quataert, Donlad, “Age of the Reforms”, An Economic and SocialHistory of the Ottoman Empire, 1300-1914 edited by Halil Inalcik with Donald Quataert ,Cambridge University Press, New York 1997, p7635 Shaw, Stanford, The History of Ottoman Empire and the Modern Turkey 1808-1975,p.71-72(after here footnoted as Shaw)6 Mantran, Robert, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu Tarihi-II(XIX. YY. Başlarından Yıkılışa),p. 59(after here footnoted as Mantran)

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The years between 1839 and 1876 was generally called Tanzimat (Reform)

Era which was a “period of sustained legislation and reform that modernized the

Ottoman state and society, contributed to the further centralization of the administration,

and brought up increased state participation on the Ottoman society.”7 Nonetheless, the

previous troubles overly went on, the minority revolts, internal opposition more

organized and the difficulties on the management of the reforms. Tanzimat ruling elites

who have just been shaped could work to aid the Abdülmecid (1839-1861) and also

Abdülaziz (1861-1876) on the process of renovation of the governmental, bureaucratic

and similar fields.

The one of the serious war was the Crimean War at those times, which

challenged against Russia out burst in 1853. It was ended up the Ottoman particular win

by help of the alliance with Britain and France as their interests there clashed with the

Russian ones. The Paris Conference in 1856 was offered that the rescue of the Empire

totally but the Anglo-French intervention on the interior issues could rise up

dramatically.8 The new capitulations for the foreigners brought new investments into

the Ottoman market; for the beneficial solutions in the economy enforced the Ottomans

to get loans from European Great Powers that was the first time in 1854. The ratios of

the debts with high interests made to endure the financial troubles more painful in

following years. To finance the new bureaucratic and large reforms new series of loan

came after another therefore, the final official bankruptcy was recognized in 1875 that

brought the establishment of Duyun-u Umumiye (the Public Dept Administration)

7 Shaw, p.558 Akşin, Sina, Türkiye Tarihi, p.130-131

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which gave great opportunities to the Western powers to handle and manage the

Ottoman balance of payment; associated it, many sectors directly.9

The tax revenues were diminishing through the 20 th century ahead that mostly

depended on the territorial looses and foreign advanced trade with interventions on the

custom taxes. For example, “the title revenue fell so badly, as result of that at the end of

1840s, the treasury had to restore tax farm system.”10 Also, the Ottoman economical

dominance had been lost on the global trade market. Those series of problems created

indirectly demographic changes within the Ottoman territory. The agrarian character of

the Ottoman society kept alive, even after 1900s; nevertheless, the population on the

rural areas has flowed into the big cities such as İstanbul, İzmir and Thessalonica where

new industrial chances could be found since 1840s and 50s.11

The Sultan tried to continue to the essential reforms in the fields of education,

governmental offices, military, justice and so on by setting up European inspired

schools and departments.12 The main problems of time were the emergences of the

nationalist and independence movements in especially in the Balkan provinces. In

Bosnia, Wallachia, Serbia that was autonomous since 1830, and Greece, minority

groups acted on lots of propagandas against the central rule of Ottoman. The one of the

striking move was the Revolt of Crete in 1866-68, that was concluded with the failure

of the rebellious.13 It shook the Ottoman society very deeply.

9Quateart, Donald, Osmanlı Devleti'nde Avrupa İktisadi Yayılımı ve Direniş (1881-1908), Yurt Yayınevi, Ankara 1987, p.1910 Shaw, p.9611 Quateart, Donald, “Age of the Reforms”, pp.782-79512 Shaw, pp.106-12013 Akşin, Sina, Türkiye Tarihi, p.135-139

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By 1876, the Ottoman throne was led to access by Murad V who has been

directed and supported by Mithad and Hüseyin Avni Pashas.14 Nevertheless, his

confused mind and disability on the administrative affairs brought a chance for his

brother Abdülhamit II in order to success to the Ottoman throne by the help of same

elites and in the same year.15 He, first of all, declared the Ottoman constitution (Kanun-i

Esasi, December 19, 1876) -as he had promised to do- on which Western indirect effect

played crucial role by the way of interior alliances.16 Only one year later, the Ottoman-

Russian War out burst in which Russian troops could siege into nearby the Capital City.

As a result of it, the Treaty of Yeşilköy (Ayestafanos) had to be signed in 1878.17

The Sultan did suspend the Ottoman Parliament on the basis of the

Constitution because he saw that the assembly was not able to function very well during

the warfare.18 The territorial losses became more visible after the Berlin Congress. The

internal reactions and hardness of the foreign domestics until 1908 steady increased for

Abdülhamit II. The Austrians, the French, the British, even Bulgaria began to threaten

the Ottomans hegemony; the Greeks, Albanians and Armenians caused new kind of

troubles trough the coming century.19

The financial problems collaborated within relatively stabilized but more

awful conditions after the announcement of Duyun-u Umumiye in 1881. On the other

side, European styled industrial occupation started to be settled down during this

pessimistic period, too. The old type of manufacture had to be replaced with modern

factories which could make the production more fruitful and raid since the half of the

14 Shaw, p.163-16415 Mantran Robert, p.13316 Shaw, p.174-17517 Akşin, Sina, Türkiye Tarihi, p. 161-16218 Shaw, p.18719 ibid, p.190-200

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19th century. The indirect European interference with the investments created new

factories actually on some cities like İstanbul, İzmir and like that. For example, in carpet

manufacture, the native Ottoman enterprises found themselves in a situation to compete

with the foreign more difficultly, even though they kept their significance for a while

more.20

The absolute monarchy of Sultan Abdülhamid II with oppressive rules

triggered the New Ottomans that was the central opposition groups by the help of their

publish organs, when the censorship was following the Ottoman socio-cultural life in

every areas.21 The suppression of the Palace could not abolish whole objection,

furthermore the revolution on the regime was needed fro more liberty. Therefore, the

Young Turks whom were likely the continuation of the New Ottomans realized a

revolution that had been initiated from the Balkans to İstanbul in 1908. The all agency

of the Sultan did not succeed to prevent the end and the Parliament and the Constitution

became valid again.22 In new regime, the Committee of Union and Progress that was the

political wing of the Young Turks took the active role.

The New Constitutional era began in 1908 but it rapidly created reactions, even

a failed counter revolution in 1909, since the CUP’s non-freedom rule had replaced the

previous one. At that complicated time, the Balkan Wars in 1911-12 and the

Tipolitanian War in 1913 enforced the new regime. The more important and destructive

events was of course the WWI that caused the nearly abolish of the Empire 1918. On

these destructive years, the Ottoman economical order has already been captured by the

20 Quateart, Donald, “Age of the Reforms”, p.888-88921 Mantran, Robert, p.19022 Shaw, p.266-267

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capitalist world in general23; the agriculture was no more under the direction of

traditional guilds; the monetary economy had to challenge with the new changed

patterns.24

The Great War made the end of the Ottoman Empire and a new series of

events was initiated in Anatolia in 1919, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Pasha.

The lost of the huge amount of territories had not been prevented by the CUP

government and commanders. Moreover, they had let the Empire imply their

authoritarian rule for a few years.25 Even if, during the CUP dominance, the British-

French influence within the state had turned into the German one.

The Turks in Anatolia pushed all negative conditions with the breast in spite

of their motherland has been wedged by armies of Britain, France, Greece and Italia.

They made the foundation of a new council as a decide mechanism against the invaders

and their collaborators in İstanbul; as a result, the Grand National Assembly was

established in Ankara in 1920. Afterwards, many resisting fights and clashes flowed in

several locations during 1920 and 22 years. The Turkish public defense and the

Atatürk’s commands helped to the achievement of certain independence; the victorious

groups declared the establishment of Republic Turkey in 1923 just after so hard

struggles.26 To sum up, the Ottoman Empire’s history had passed the 19th and 20th

century with modernization and transformation movements that always remained under

the shadow of the internal and international troubles.

23 Akşin, Sina, Türkiye Tarihi, p.195-19624 İnalcık, Halil, “Evolution of the Ottoman Monetary System”, An Economic and Social Hhistory of the Ottoman Empire, 1300-1914, with Donald Quataert ,Cambridge University Press, New York, 1997, p.968-97225 Mantran, Robert, p.296-29726 Shaw, p.345-368

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2- WHAT ABOUT “THE OTTOMAN WORKING CLASS” in THE 19th

CENTURY and DURINGTHE LAST DECADES?

“Worker” means that is a person who works to earn money, in basic term.

However, terminologically on our issue means something more complex; “worker” or

“laborer” is the person who does not have the means of productions and works on the

others’ production tools, lives by selling his effort to those who have capital within an

agreement signed by himself/herself freely.”27At this context, The Ottoman Empire has

introduced with such kind of group in the late 1800s actually,28 but the questions about

the workers or the emergency of the working class are still in debate. Because, the most

of the researchers studying at the subject argue that a working class had not existed in

the Ottomans, just like the Westerners have perceived or appeared in the West. That’s

why, the Ottoman primitive labor class have distinguishing characteristic due to the

political, economical, as well as social developments in the Empire throughout the last

centuries. 29 The working began to appear after 1850s and showed a developing style in

the beginning of the 20th century, which parallelizing with the first attempts of liberal

market economy and the capitalist investments.

There were some descriptions for the waged-laborer in the Ottoman Empire.

“Amele” is the most known one for the workers. Amele was used synonym as “işçi” in

some documents (worker).30 Apart from the definition, a worker was perceived as a kind

of soldier by the order for so long time. This view is shown as one of the reasons why a 27 Sencer, Oya, Türkiye'de İşçi Sınıfının: Doğuşu ve Yapısı, Habora Kitabevi, İstanbul 1969, p.12(after here footnoted as Sencer)28 Fişek,Kurthan, Türkiye’de Kapitalizmin Gelişmesi ve İşçi Sınıfı,Doğan Yayınevi, Ankara 1969, p.3729Çelik, Birten, “Osmanlı İşçi Tarihi ve Türkiye: Genel Bir Değerlendirme” XIV.Türk Tarih Kongresi, Ankara:9-13 Eylül 2002, Kongreye Sunulan Bildiriler, v.II, part II, Ankara:TTK 2006, p.106430 Çelik,Birten, p. 1064

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real working class could not place on the Ottoman Empire in general. Moreover, they

were kept under the responsibility of the Ministry of War.31 In some other sources, it is

seem that the workers had been enforced to work in a job or activity of production. By

the time, the entrance of the foreign entrepreneurs and industrial production system

gave a different course to this people.

In the state, waged-labors were divided into some basic categories in terms of

their sectors. The first group of workers was occupied by those who have been affording

their jobs in their own houses such as the weavers, carpet makers and similar atelier

workers. Then, the craftsmen were amongst the second category that was located in

urban areas around the weaker guilds. Another and directly related with our topic was

the industrial workers who played significant and central role on the appearance of the

“proletariat” class.32 The agricultural workers who would have worked seasonally can

be added to this categorization. Since, they had not have property or the means of

production, but they had to login the jobs for the payment.

The ethnic variety of the workers were interesting; to sample, Ereğli Coal

Company most famous organization held by the foreigners have been managed by

particular non-Muslim or non-Ottoman groups. 36 % of the company workers, for

instance, were enterprised by Turks and rest of them was occupied by non-Muslims

among 124 miners totally. 33 However, Muslims or the natives had more been preferred

31 Karakışla, Y. Selim, “The Emergence of The Ottoman Industrial Working Class,1839-1923”, Workers and the Working Class in the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish Republic, 1839-1950 edited by Donald Quataert and Erik Jan Zürcher,London ; New York : Tauris Academic Studies in Association with the International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam 1995, p.19-20(after here footnoted as Karakışla, 1996)32 Makal,Ahmet, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nda Çalışma İlişkileri : 1850-1920 : Türkiye Çalışma ilişkileri Tarihi İmge Kitabevi, Ankara 1997,p.142 (after here footnoted as Makal)33 Quataert, Donald, Osmanlı Devleti'nde Avrupa İktisadi Yayılımı ve Direniş (1881-1908), p.49

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by the employers, who were thought that having less consciousness about taking part in

the unions.34

The each part of the society could join into the working class. The ratio of the

women and children among the worker did steadily rise as they could work for fewer

wages. The rise of the mentioned groups became more obvious after the mid 19 th

century.35 The cheaper labor force of women was benefited on weaving, carpet or rug

making and similar textile sectors.36

The Ottoman labor force could be separated in some groups in terms of

payment; the primary group was the workers who were paid daily or weekly. Another

one was those who have worked in returns a certain salary in different industries, most

of them cloud not get it regularly. Next workers had to produce sufficient number of

commodities and were paid according to their production. Finally, the most

conventional and widespread ones, the employees were paid working hours in a day,

which way was preferred in the railways and the mines generally.37 The labor force of

women and children were used by the foreigners, too. However, they had to contented

with lowest amount of money such like the lots of women and children were employed

in a British carpet company was getting 1,6 krş.38 A machine worker could earn about

300-400 krş annually. A professional master had gotten 750 krş, who had the highest

34 Kırpık, Cevdet, Laborers and Labor Movements in the Ottoman Empire(1876-1914), Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Tarih Anabilim Dalı, Isparta 2004, p.62-63 (after here footnoted as Kırpık)35 Erişçi,Lütfi, Türkiye İşçi Sınıfının Tarihi (Özet olarak), Kebikeç, Ankara 1997, p.91(after here fotnoted as lütfi,Erişçi36 Sencer, p.93-9437 Kırpık, p.109-11038 Erişçi, Lütfi, p.94-95

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amount within the workers and had lowest one of a civil servant. The salaries of the

workers were the bottom of the Ottoman society.39

There were also exceptional ways of payments in a few sectors like the coal

miners in Zonguldak catchment area. The workers in here made their efforts for hours in

returns for some commodities such as tins, American swab, chintz and so on. This type

of remuneration has been lasted until the end of 1880. Besides, as it happened in Kurci

Company, the taxes of the villager-workers living around mines were appointed to the

company prevailed the coasts of the production that had been bought by the state. 40

The working hours of the workers had not defined exactly, yet. This situation

was so important reason of the unrests that undefined working hours became the second

common cause to organize a strike. The Oriental Railways workers have justified their

movements with to the so long working hours.41 The workers were generally said that

“you would run to work from the sun dawn until the sundown” that sometimes meant

14-16, even more hours for the laborers.42 At the content of the law, working hours have

demonstrated differences seasonally, region to region as well.43 Some workers on the

silk production have to spend their 14 hours by working with just 2 hours breaking.44

The holiday and the permission issues of the ordinary workers were the other

troubles have to be mentioned at that point. The restriction on the holiday time occupies

the one of the major reasons for the strike movements in which the state have made no

39 Sencer, p.94-9540 Çıladır, Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-1940, Yeraltı Maden-İş Yayınları, Ankara 1977, p.3141 Karakışla, p.2342 Sencer, p.9543 Makal, p.20144 Kırpık, p.128

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certain regulation. The eyewitnesses of the time described that the workers could not be

allowed properly rest in a week or a day.45

The Ottoman working class had been deprived of many social rights that might

enable to live in more humanitarian conditions. Apart from that, the latter group had

strongly massive working conditions. The right of retirement, for example, was not

properly applied even for those who had worked so long time. The right was preferred

to be used for the officers and the soldiers much more previous than the workers. It’s

implication for who belong to the labor force was so rare at the end the 19 th c.46 The care

of health of the workers was not considered by both the state and the private ownership,

in general. Their living standards were obviously under average of the rest of the world.

The matter of working conditions could be described as really inhuman. Their

health could be easily corrupted, above that most of them had no insurance right, even

some of the workers could be beaten by their bosses. At the situation of sickness, they

could be dismissed without any payment. Also some families had abolished as men

workers have visited to the bawdyhouses just around the working areas. The visitors

had been infected a lot of genetic illnesses form there. They, on the other side, were at

the risk of suppression of the moneylenders due to the fact that they had to borrow

money with high interests, which was so hard to pay back. Eventually, the workers

could not properly imagine their futures and most of them could not take place on the

social activities because of less time.47

45 Gülmez, Mesut, Türkiye’de Çalışma İlişkileri(1936 öncesi), Sevinç Matbaası, Ankara 1983, p.36646 ibid, p.13547 Sencer, p.95-96

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The overall comment about these people who had to work in order to live as

proletariat can be made as the industrial developments in the Ottoman Empire

beginning after 1830 have created “a new type of slavery”48, such like happened in

many countries at those days. Because the working class were really ignored and

thought as the lowest social groups in the Ottoman Empire, especially by the

administrative units. The workers pushed out the farming and migrated into the cities

had met new terms of poverty, too. When whole awful conditions had combined with

the state’s dealing with the protection of the investors and the companies rather than the

workers’ right, the unrest and organizational unification of the workers began to appear

in 1800s and next century, which should be perceived as the demanding the delayed and

principal rights by the workers.49 As the main argument of our study, it will be

evaluated in the next coming parts.

3-THE LABOR MOVEMENTS AND UNIONIST ACTIVITIES in THE

OTTOMAN İSTANBUL and ANATOLIA: 1870-1923

The events that had been organized by the Ottoman working class have

remained particular, sudden, and exactly not planned actions in the Ottoman Empire for

a long time. By the modernization blows appeared in the 19 th century, these spectacular

movements have began to be realized and seen more frequently, particularly at the

industrial centers of the state were shaped generally the capitalist of the abroad.

Nevertheless, the issue is still debatable and there are few resources that directly

evaluating it. The workers’ actions have fulfilled by some sort of breaking dates. From

48Gülmez,Mesut, 1983, p. 282-28349Çelik,Birten, p.1069

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the old times, actually classical era, to 1870, such kind of reactions had been processed

in soundless tempo. Afterwards, the latter events have begun to be shaped a little bit

more orderly and regularly, but they were still far away from being consciousness until

the Young Turk Revolution in 1908. That period of time had made the working class

and their movements of strikes, demonstrations and unions more familiar for the

Ottoman state and society which have been modernizing and getting used to the

capitalist system of the world.

Just after 1908, the movements and gathering around the trade unions by the

laborers have gained relatively consciousness and organizational experience. The

mentioned class had learnt many things from the before about how they will have

demanded their principal rights and united within a single society to get voice. As the

secondary sources at the issue are showing that the strikes and uprising of the workers

had gone in a rising and declining direction for long while. That’s why, our

classification of the matter will be at that periodical perspective.

3.a-The Unrests of the Workers Until 1870

The laborers’ unrests in the Ottoman Empire could be carried back to the 16 th

century, even more previous by some historians. The one of the first example of

contradictions between the employer and the employee in the Ottoman was realized on

the construction area. The carpenters, masons and stone workers’ masters who were

working at a building of a mosque financed by Mehmet Pasha in 1587 demanded 4

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akçes extension on their 12 akçe daily fees. This little and weak acts even concluded

with a success that their wants was agreed by the administrators. In spite of this

achievement, the workers were warned for not ordering any other opposition or new

demand.50 However, it is so difficult to see that events as predetermined movement. It

might be considered as an action of demanding more fees from the employers which

could be confronted in every community, even at ancient ones. Perhaps, it could help to

perceived that some sort of working class had existed, though not similar today’s, in the

Ottoman Empire in the classical ages.

By coming trough the industrial steps and its bringing industrial formations in

the 19th century, the new kind of labor force acts have appeared, too. The pioneer

movements began to emerged at the Balkan and Rumeli territories of the Empire, 51 but

they have not been death in detail as it is out of the topic, even though it should be noted

that the relatively consciousness of being as a class out of Anatolia have reflected on the

workers’ organizations at later period.52 The first attempts of the laborers have been

realized as the shape of “the machine breaking” at the first half of the century. The

mechanization had been needed by the Ottoman Industry that was newly establishing

and such necessary tools of production started to be exported for Europe. However,

these machines have discomfited some people who could be subsisted their lives by

selling their efforts. The movements of breaking machine risen up after 1845 where the

mechanization was processing mostly.53

50 Koç,Yıldırım, Türkiye'de İşçi Sınıfı ve Sendikacılık Tarihi, Yorum Basın Yayın, Ankara 1996, p.1151 Sencer, p. 8952 Makal, p.24353 Sencer, p.89

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Non-workers wanted to work at the steamy fabrics just be built in Bursa. As a

negative reaction, the group of workers burned and destroyed the machines of the fabric

in 1861 by justifying it as that the fabric had been established on a graveyard.54

Although this interesting event seems as reactions due to the religious, conservative,

xenophobic matters and anxious towards the machines of the workers, the real and

pragmatically reason behind the event in Bursa was the fear of unemployment which the

manpower will have be replaced with the machine power.55 As we can understand from

this specific case, a kind of proletariat people began to emerged in the Empire at that

time.

For before 1870, many researchers and historians demonstrate that the Police

Regulation in 1845 is the first founded evidence existence of the strike or similar

working movements within the state. The Regulation exactly dated on 10 th April, 1845

promoted the missions of the policemen inside the territories, so it was not directly

related with the workers’ acts. However, its some articles formed out the legal treatment

towards the any case of strike and workers togetherness. At the article 12, it was shortly

said that every kind of situation of strike by leaving from workplaces which could

interrupt the order of the society and revolutionary acts organized by the employees

should be prevented rapidly.56 The core of the latter article contained the absolute

forbidden of the strikes. According to Sencer, this codification have proved the presence

of the working class and even intents of unionist attempts in the Ottoman Empire, as it

was followed the words in the article.57 It is obvious that the laborers’ acts had been

noticed and dealt with by the state.

54 Karakışla, 1995, p.2055 Sencer, p.9056 Gülmez, Mesut, 1983, p.359-36057 Sencer, p.96-98

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Besides the debatable instances, there exited couples of proved labor

movements in the Empire, before 1870s. On September 18, 1862, serious historical

documents showed that the workers had been employed in the Martial Cloth Houses

(Elbisehane-i Askeri) and their bins took a step of leaving the job in order to gain their

fees. The group of laborers has gone to the department of General Military Staff (Bab-ı

Seraskeri) to get their unpaid and cumulated wages along with they have protested the

administrators of the department radically.58 Unfortunately, the massive workers could

not receive their wills and even if the leaders of the demonstrations have been arrested.

The important, maybe the most, point behind the case underlined by Çelik is that the

newspapers could have issued this event six mounts later. It shows the anxiety looking

and unsatisfied treatment towards such kind of uprisings.

Another example of strike on before those dates was hone seem. The

construction workers have worked on the building of a castle called as Kal’a-yı Tis’a

struck by demanding an increment on their wages in 1826.59Also, it was maintained that

a strike movement had been fulfilled in the Ereğli Coal Mines in 1863 as the one of

precedent actions there, which will have accelerated on the next decades.60

The most of the movements of this period were quite rare, local, specific events.

After 1870 on the number of the strike attempts appeared an relative rise, but the

participation of the workers retained its upper level. The main problem and reason of

the workers who have occupied on the actions against the state was generally so long

unpaid-actually not adequate- wages of them. Most of time, the strikes or protestations

58 Çelik, Birten, p.107359 Kırpık, p. 4560 Koç, Yıldırım, p.12

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resulted in the failure because the state or newly developing private owners have never

considered their employees’ conditions, they, in fact, have tried to add more profits to

their cases whatever happened the job had to be completed. Therefore, the productive

class has remained lack of proper payment. Additionally, the unification around a single

trade union was not really thought by the workers themselves, on previous years of

1870s.

It could be counted a few organizations resembling to a trade union, which

might not be looked at as a real union. To see them, it was a little bit early, yet.

Although the state’s regulations and primitive laws, just like “Demiryolları Usulü

Zabıtasına Dair Nizamnamesi” in 1867, have banned all kind of community

approaching by the working units, some organizations were established at least the ones

that were regarding the workers.61

In fact, the Ottoman Empire had old and traditional organizations which would

partially have dealt with the business issues employment relations and –a sort of

worker-artisans’ activities; the guilds. They were hundred years of background driving

from the Islamic rules. They were occupied by the artisans who had professions in a

specific job and the guilds have made regulations the relationship among its members of

workers along with their commercial facilities. The artisans who could became masters

and new beginning apprentices who could not handed a job, yet might be perceived as a

propertyless workers. Thus, the guilds could be considered the ancient or primary forms

of the trade unions. They were efficient on many business matters until last decades of

1800s. Since, the economical changes in which the modern necessities of the time were

adopted had made crucial and fatal impact upon the guilds and finally they began to lose

61 Koç, Yıldırım, p.14-15

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their significance until the official abolishment in 1912. This lose in the efficiency had

even caused that the countless workers founded themselves out of jobs.62

Nevertheless, before 1870s, there occurred new aid corporations that have

cared about the workers’ conditions. These different kinds of occupations began to

appear in 1866 and later, obviously. They were particularly shaped by the foreign

communities in İstanbul. They were actually called as societies which were combined

under the name of “Societies Protection of the Workers. The administrators even put

some declarations on the time’s newspapers, the founders of them were among the elites

and the bourgeoisie of the capital. However, these organizations could not be taken as

real trade unions in today’s mean even though they were interested in the working class.

They, because, were not occupied and managed directly by the laborers themselves.

The one of the initial solidarity acts of the Society of Opera of the Italians

was the donation of the certain amount of the income of the Theater of Naum for the

workers’ aid chests. Next of these organizations was “Ami du Travail” (Emek Dostları

Derneği) that had been set up in İstanbul, on May of 1866. It has announced its main

purpose to employ the poor workers and supply them needed labor tools without any

religious or ethnic discrimination. For this reason, the society offered some aids to non-

Muslims, Greek or Armenian, too. In the last context, those societies were so distant

from becoming real trade union or occupations of the workers. The elites of İstanbul

who have been ideologically affected by the European bourgeoisie might consider

helping to the poor and workers a deep feeling of charity.63 In other word, they might

think that they will have gained important prestige among the overall societies of

62 Kırpık, p.42-4363 Sencer, p.103-105

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İstanbul if they could be seen when they would deal with the problems of ordinary poor

workers. This trend of help has yet continued to seem at later years.

For a general evaluation of the worker movements and unionist activities

underlined before 1870s, the first outgoing feature was that walkouts or strikes were

very briefly lasted and local events. Then, lack of organizational togetherness among

the workers made an awful influence on the success of the actions. However, it can be

said that these developments of the movements at that period have occupied the

beginning for the newly emerging working class, proletariats, who remained so ignorant

about the class consciousness, especially the ones in Anatolia. Although the attempts of

societies in İstanbul made chance to take breath for the worker, they could not pass over

behind the simple aid activities. Eventually, at the next time period after 1870, the more

serious labor movements and trade unions would be seen.

3.b- The Events at Between 1870 and 1908

The relatively enlightenment of the Ottoman working class become clear after

1870 in real mean, at least some restlessness among them happened. Since, the

frequency and number of the labor movements and strikes began to increase at the time

in which the Ottoman finance system was likely to bankrupt. Whole painful conditions

naturally reflected upon the workers. At the moment, the effort-sellers had more

courage for searching their rights by demanding their unpaid wages or fees. The unrests

of the workers have usually shown up as the type of leaving the jobs again. The starting

points of the strikes took place in both the areas of the state and private sectors,

industries that have began to rise up their field of influence and presence much more

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than before. Some foreigners even could have the chance to buy a sort of property jut

after the codification signed in 1860s.64 In short, every thing was suitable for that the

labor movements started to set on an ideological essence at that period of time.

The one of the primary acts of leaving the job was revealed in about 1872 as

the most of the sources have accepted. The telegram workers, interestingly, worked in

Beyoğlu Post Office in İstanbul organized a strike.65 However, some researchers at the

issue have put forward that the strike of the Maritime workers on January 1872 was the

first seriously real labor movements in Ottoman Empire. Its confusing reason was

because of the fact that the newspapers of the time had made a dating mistake.66

Therefore, the second given example at Maritime was dated in 1873.67 This is an

ongoing discussion in fact, but it is obvious the rise on the strike actions against any

company. At the period between 1870 and 1908, about 50 strike events have been

witnessed.68

The terminological approach describing the strike or event of leaving job in

Ottoman fourth estate and the official documents was quite strange which was “tatil-i

eşgal”.69 Also, some other terms were used: tatil-i mesalih, terk-i mesai, terk-i eşgal and

the today’s expression, grev –coming from French- began to be used especially at post-

1908 era.70

64Şanda, H. A., Yarı Müstemleke Oluş Tarihi/1908 İşçi Hareketleri, Gözlem Yayınları, İstanbul 1978, p. 6265 Gülmez, Mesut, “Tanzimat’tan Sonra İşçi Örgütlenmesi ve Çalışma Koşulları (1839-1919)”, Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e Türkiye Ansiklopedisi, v:3, İletişim Yayınları, İstanbul 1985, p. 79366 Sencer, p.13367 Karakışla, 1995, p.2168 Güzel, M. Şehmus, Türkiye’de İşçi Hareketleri-1908-1984, Kaynak Yayınları, İstanbul 1996, p.27(after here footnoted as Güzel, Şehmus)69 Sencer, p.13070 Güzel, Şehmus, p.25

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These simple reactions of the workers on the way of demanding the rights were

very important, because for those who did not have the means of production the strikes

were the best way to show their capabilities and efficiency to the bosses. That’s why,

some events, like machine breaking, were not seen at that period, which have not been

perceived so logical by the workers for themselves, too.

Having turned back to the movements, the first strike of the telegram

employees created a deep caution and complaint among the members of the Institution

of the Exchange, because they have established intensive relations with the telegram

workers in order to get knowledge about the activities on the Exchange. When their

intelligence or tip sources were suspended by the strikes, the dealers of the exchange

thought that they will not have taken any expedience or made a move on time.71 The

exact reason behind this particular strike had not been presented on the secondary

sources, but it might be fulfilled due to the unpaid wages or to demand increase on the

fees.

The strikes did not end with it, the laborers working on the construction of

Ömerli-Yarımburgaz Railway made an effort of uprising.72 Some foremen and skilled

workers among them decided to leave their jobs and stopped the all construction

processes for three weeks by sitting in the tents that have been set on the railway by

them.73 Their spectacular event was even cared by the newspapers, too. According to

Sencer, its reason was a conflict of wage occurred between the foremen and the owners

of the company. When the constructed ways had been measured, the workers could not

get the needed money and this envied them. It said that they have used guns so that the

71 Sencer, p.13372 Gülmez, Mesut, 1985, p.79373 Karakışla, 1995, p.20

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company could not prevent the movement by using force by itself; as a result the

conflict was led to the court in order to be solved.74

This organized strike was so efficient that it had leapt to the İzmit Railway. In

the first week of April in 1872, Croatian constructers and the foremen staged a walk out

as they have faced a disagreement between each others.75 Due to having left the job, the

construction works were suspended for a week, too. At the case, some company

managers decided to take much more effective preventions against such events as they

took lessons from the previous events. The movements were put a result by violence on

which a little army troops were assigned to abolish the strikes under the command of

Ethem Pasha. The main causes behind the railway workers’ acts were not even known

certainly, but it realized because of the hostility towards the foreign owners. 76 300

workers employed on an atelier of shoemaking in Beykoz made a protestation on July

of the same year as they could not be paid regularly.77

In the case of the Maritime strike, approximately 500-600 workers had joint,

some women, children even non-Muslims took place on it. They become an example for

next generations’ in terms of declaration of the demands by writing petitions to the

Grand Vizier. Therefore, it contains another point of significance. Karakışla shows that

the women had played more militant role on the strike.78 Nevertheless, the workers

could not reach at their unpaid fees; they could create an attention on the public opinion,

however. The unresolved problems both on the Maritime and the railways will have

caused the bursts new strikes again later.

74 Sencer, p.13475 Karakışla, 1995, p.20-2176 Sencer, p.13577 Erişçi,Lütfi, p.9078 Karakışla, 1995, p. 21

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Their actions in 1875, about 1200 workers had joint into the strikes to get their

salaries unpaid for six moths, but this time they put a success by taking the salaries and

return to the jobs again.79 On August, 1875, Muslim constructors staged a walk-out in

Taksim and demonstrated their reactions against the foreign engineers.80 Even they were

supported by some soldiers but most of the protestors could not run away from arresting

by the commanders. This demonstration might encourage the other so that porters in

Sirkeci combined within a strike movements. In the last months of 1875, the latter

porters demanded a rise on their wages, too, as provocation of the stewards; the events

ended by deciding the workers will have been paid directly after now, and the other

mediators will have been eliminated.81 As most of the mediators were non-Ottomans,

this events show that the antagonism among the workers have begun to be felt seriously.

Just one year later, The Ottoman Empire had entered into the 1st Constitutional

Era. The New Constitution (Kanun-i Esasi), however, would not bring the principal

rights and the freedom for the Ottoman subjects totally.82 The changes on the

governmental mentality, at least initially, were important for the poor activist workers,

nevertheless. The newly legislated codes or laws did not directly mention about the

freedom of the workers in order to move organizationally, but new approaches on the

freedom of speech of the media offered suitable opportunities for the laborers to

announce their unrests to the public opinion. The temporary liberated encourage them to

make organizational units and actions with some restrictions. The opposition within

political groups who always tented to misuse the basic rights and freedoms caused that

79 Gülmez, Mesut,1985, p.793/ Sencer, p.13880 Karakışla, ibid, p.2181 Sencer, 138-13882 Işık,Yüksel, Osmanlı’dan Günümüze İşçi Hareketlerinin Evrimi(1876-1994), Öteki yayınevi, Ankara 1995, p.14-15

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Abdulhamid II suspended the Constitution in 1877.83 Eventually the working class has

continued to live lack of a codification that outlines their rights and supported them

against the employers until the Young Turk Revolution.

As the strike movements were developing in the Ottoman Empire, they handed a

chance to find out an ideological background from the West. In 1864, K.Marx and

Engels haled to set up the 1st International and a few years later the Community of Paris

was announced in 1871. Those intellectual attempts at the center of Europe have

carefully been watching by the Young Turks and their pioneers the Young Ottomans to

introduce new ideologies for the emerged movements in the Ottoman Empire.

The new theoretical and practical developments had encouraged the whole

proletariat class to sound their rightful voices against the bosses in some counties. But

the Ottoman working class had this consciousness a bit more later as the state. Since,

the Ottoman capitalists and even the state had tried to freeze the movements and stay

within a narrow perception always. They usually thought that unified and single actions

of the workers might have caused a general revolution which could even destroy the

governments. Some Ottoman intellectuals, like Namık Kemal, both extolled the 1St

International and the Comunnity of Paris and tried to inject their ideologies into the

Ottoman working class directly or indirectly.84 In spite of some little attempts of

unification among the working class, the real and severe influence of the socialist

ideologies upon them will have started to seem after 1900 and following years. The

principal reasons on this delaying were the oppressive administration of Sultan

83 ibid, p.19-2284 Şişmanov, Dimitir, Türkiye İşçi ve Sosyalist Hareketi, trans. by Ayşe and Ragıp Zarkolu, Belge Yayınları, İstanbul 1990, p.25-27

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Abdulhamid II and then the lack of class consciousness did not appear among the

Ottoman society.85

The Constitution’s short lived liberty and the initial reflections of the

socialist ideologies created the acceleration on the labor movements, of course, as

deepening financial problems of the Empire. More than 200 coachmen in Beyoğlu

demanded the abolishment of the unfair implications over them by scribing petitions to

the Grand Vizier in1876 due to the fact that their jobs had been stopped by a company

that has gained some privileges on the transportation from the government.86 Then, the

familiar actors, Maritime workers in Hasköy struck in February 1876 once again but,

this time the English machinists and workers have joint to the strike, too. On May, the

chronic issue of unpaid wages caused the demonstrations of about 2000 laborers. They

were responded by the Minister of Maritime (Bahriye Nezareti) as that if they turn back

to their jobs, they will have hold for months salaries; those who refused the offer among

them were threaten with the dismissing from the jobs.87 As we have learnt, the workers

who have accepted the offer and restarted the jobs were beaten and even wounded by

the rejecters; thus there existed a separation between them.88

The tram and railway employees in Haydarpaşa pursued to the strike trend.

Nonetheless, this unfortunate movement and the others on same years were excised by

the Ottoman-Russian War in 1877. After the war concluded with the defeat of the

Ottoman next year, the masons, shoemakers and tailors of İstanbul organized a strike in

October, 1878 in order to declare 70% increase on their wages from the employers. To

85 ibid, p.2986 Sencer, p.13987 Gülmez, Mesut,1985, p.79388 Sencer, p.140-141

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justify the request, they said that the current fees were not adequate for even the basic

needs. The trend on making strikes went on in 1879 by the movement of the some

constructers as they have requested rise on their salaries and reducing the working

hours.89

While the strikes emerged after another, the Ottoman government decided to

decrease the intrinsic value of the coinage because of the war and the banknote (kaime)

went far below its real value.90 These critical decisions naturally enhanced the unrests of

the workers who had to live under the awful conditions. Therefore, in March 25, 1879,

the workers of the Ferry Boat Company (Şirket-i Hayriye) struck in order to not to be

paid in the valueless kaime, but the Company refused it.91 The same demand was

spoken by the Maritime Arsenal workers 92 and they were promised to get their wages in

gold liras in spite of the rate of the wages has been brought down by the Ministry. The

mentioned few movements can easily proved that the negative economical progresses of

the Ottoman governments had directly affected the working class and their movements.

By 1880, some other experiments of leaving job and demonstrations were

observed. In February of this year, the workers of Haydarpaşa and Tophane staged a

strike to voice their cumulated salaries for mounts.93 Even if, in the case on Tophane in

June, a few groups amng the laborers enforced the responsible of the company, Ali Saib

Pasha by surrounding its car. In Haydarpaşa, the strikers’ requests were accepted but

other event ended up without success.94 The failed workers acceded to continue to the

jobs with lesser wages; since, the state was at the core of the massive economical crises

89 ibid, p.142-14390 Karakışla, 1995, p.2191 Gülmez, Mesut,1985, p.79392 Karakışla, ibid, p.2193 Kırpık,. p.234/ Sencer, p.14494 Gülmez, Mesut, ibid, p.794

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that could not pay the wages properly and also the danger of unemployment each

moment. With the relative decreasing on the tatil-i eşgal, different ways of declaration

of the right went on appear introduced by both foreign and native workers. For instance,

the French, British, Belgian, Greek and other group of non-Muslim workers wrote

letters to the newspapers that they were suffering from not getting the wages and they

were in very poor circumstances after the Haydarpaşa Railway Company had changed.95

Although the fall in the frequency of the strikes after 1880, particular labor

movements organized by the laborers continued to take place on the press. In November

25, 1880, the workers employed on the ships of the Company of Haliç(Golden Horn)

held a petition to the government, first of all by demanding to take their wages in golden

money(mecidiye), no in kaime.96Additionally, they came with a new kind of claim that

it will have not cut the medicine care money in %2 rate from the salaries. They were

promised as they will have been answered in short time; it was the special and perhaps

first time that the state responded the workers with official letter.97

The most serious and negative impact over the diminishing of the strikes was

the Abdülhamid’s obvious suppression and intensive will of control upon the public

opinion alongside each kind of meeting that have relatively made the waged-workers

valor. The few groups, like the one in the Fabrika-yı Humayun in Zeytinburnu, could

dare to organize a strike in 1881 in order to demand to get the accumulated wages from

the Palace and Tophane.98 The censorship implied on the newspapers by the Sultan

played critical role on decreasing detected labor movements.

95 Sencer, p.14596 Karakışla, 1995, p.2297 Sencer, p.14598 Kırpık, p.234

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Also, the shoemakers in Tatavla brought the suppression by fulfilling a strike

in October, 1882. Next information was seen about the action of the wood-reapers in

April 10, 1885, under a unique organization. At that case, the reason was so similar; to

hold the unpaid fees rapidly. The treatment of the policemen to them might make an

idea about how the official attitude of the state towards such kind of uprisings. As soon

as the strike news were heart by the department, the police cut the event by immediately

arresting responsible persons of this unified act and taking away the ringleaders to the

police station.99 During this highly pressured period, it was even so hard to see the word

of strike, tatil-i eşgal, on the Ottoman media.

The strike movements that have been staged by the workers of a store in

Beyoğlu in February 1, 1886100 did not create an important sense on the forth estate, but

it was so interesting. However, the familiar laborers in the Maritime who had

accustomed to the strike want on a new movement of leaving the job. The action started

in August 23, 1886 was participated partly this time. They renewed the strike two years

later lasted for a few months. The Maritime workers who could not confronted any

proper and regular payment introduce a new strike in 1893 again, but this time the

striking groups tried a new method which was that they wanted to help from the Sultan

personally not to pay to the newly employed Maritime workers.101 The movement in

there was so efficient that it had reflected on the official documents of the Empire on

which the new wage payment had been described.102 Nevertheless, the chronic wage

problems would not be tended to solve caused new events on the Maritime in 1900

99 Sencer, p.146100 Fişek, Kurthan, 1969, p.45101 Kırpık, p.234102 BEO, Bahriye 2557 35, July 20, 1892

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again. The hopeless ones of them chose the way of turning back to the jobs, but the

most of the decided workers continued the strike by togethering in the coffeehouses.

The same reasons to stage a strike were valid for them in the act in April 3, 1906 once

more.103

The one of the latest labor movement could be observed in the Reggie

Administration (Reji İdaresi) which has been monopolized on the tobacco sector, even

has been challenging against the smuggling of the tobacco within the Ottoman

territories by taking jurisdictions from the governments.104 This company owned by the

foreign investors was protested in Samsun in 1887. The opposition against the Reggie

was shaped by the tobacco farmers living around the region, at which the general

policies of the corporation on the tobacco formed the main focus point for the

protestors.105 The Reggie and its workers have occupied significant place on the labor

movements later periods. The next great one in the company was seen in İstanbul in

1906. However, it could be maintained on the newspapers two years later and this

caused that some intellectuals, like Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil, have considered the events as

the first strike movement of the Ottoman working class, mistakenly.106

Some specific reasons were handed, too. In April, 1893, a group of workers

employed in the mortar machine in Cibali tobacco fabrics struck as the machines were

so large that made impossible to compress the raw tobacco by hand.107 Besides, other

strikes were organized even to strengthen the solidarity among the workers. Since, the

employers could easily expel their employees, so losing the jobs as the only source of

103 Kırpık, p.235104 Quataert, Donald, Osmanlı Devleti'nde Avrupa İktisadi Yayılımı ve Direniş (1881-1908), p.25-35105 ibid, p.43106 Sencer, p.146-147107 Kırpık, p.242

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income was always danger for the poor workers. In a fabric of İspermeçet(?) owned by

a private person, two Armenian laborers were fired, and for this reason other 64

working men went into the strike to protest their bosses and to support their

unemployed friends in 1894. Furthermore, there were Muslims and Greeks among the

protestors.108 It was an interesting event showing the solidarity among the Ottoman

workers at that period.

The strikes in pre-1908 era continued with the strikes of the workers of the

Paşabahçe Glass Industry in the first months in 1907. As a contradiction appeared

between old laborers and the company, because some Anatolian workers have been

kicked out and Austrian ones have been taken place of them; therefore the wronged

workers made a protestation against the mentioned implication and the state took same

measures to prevent it.109 Also, some workers employed in the Anatolian Rail Ways

threaten the government to destroy Sapanca and Bilecik bridges, due to the fact that a

disagreement happened between two engineer and the workers there. Its results were

even considered by the government and some steps with investigation were initiated

rapidly.110

The other strikes of the carpenters in İstanbul and workers of İdare-i Mahsusa at

the first decade of twentieth century can bee added to the labor movements between

1870 and 1908.111 The one of the latest strike examples in Anatolia was fulfilled by the

tailors in İzmir.112 In contrast to Anatolia, İstanbul was also leading city in the Ottoman

108Kırpık, p.241109 BOA, ZB, 627 86/87, April 27,1907110 BOA, DH. MKT, 1215 45, December 7, 1907111 Güzel Şehmus, “Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”, Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e Türkiye Ansiklopedisi, v.3, İstanbul 1985, p.805112 ibid. p.807

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Empire on the appearance of the movements where more than half of the total strikes

were staged within the Empire’s territory.

The distribution of the strikes and other labor movements that they had been

occurred at between 1870 and 1908 based on the sectors can be obviously seen that the

ship construction, the textile and the transportation took a huge proportion. Moreover,

the leather makers appeared among them. Apart from these basic sectors, there were

less tendency and will towards the strikes. The common features of the actions at that

period were that almost all of them were spontaneous and failed or few received

attempts. Further, the generally they shared common output points which were usually

the unpaid or accumulated wages for a long time as well as the increase demand on the

salaries.113 The main factor behind the failure of the events was that the state has

ideologically perceived the strikes as a risk of rebel and potential act of infringement of

the public order.114

The strikes were so frequently abolished by using force commonly. The

organizational characteristic of the unrests offered a situation that was so distant from

real unifications. They were sudden and short lived. Additionally, the leaders of the

movements have been chosen among the striking group to negotiate with the

responsible persons for a specific event and temporarily.115

The trade unions which have been occupied by the working people to protect

their rights happened to see very few at that time period. The Workers Benevolent

Society (Ameleperver Cemiyeti) that was established in 1871 have been argued as the

113 Sencer, 148,149114 Karakışla, p.30115 Güzel, Şehmus, “Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”, p.809

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first trade union in the Ottoman Empire, but recent detailed studies have proved that it

was not a real labor union in terms of its functions. The society can be accepted a

continuation of the previous attempts on the area, like a welfare corporation aiding to

the workers in İstanbul.116

The Capital City, İstanbul and of course Anatolia went on to remain very barren

in terms of the existing unionist activities in those years, at least contrary to the Balkan

territories of the Empire.117 The caisson tried to meet the problems of the working class

in practical ways. For example, in February 1876, a caisson, Tekaüt Sandığı which was

intention for occupation in the Post and Telegram Office was anticipating some

essential rights of the workers such as salary of retirement for a while.118

In modern time, the Ottoman Workers Society (Osmanlı Amele Cemiyeti) set

up in 1894 which resembled and was considered the first serious organizational product

of the Ottoman working class within basic class consciousness. The society was formed

by the laborers in the Tophane factories in İstanbul, in fact illegally. This active group

introduced a board by electing 8 people among employed 4000 workers. The mentioned

board was contacting with the opposing elites, the Young Turks in Europe. Nonetheless,

just one year later its illegal activities, according to the laws at that time, was discovered

by the Ottoman government and the society was closed as well its founders were exiled.

When the Hamidian regime’s pressures over the society went on, a few old members of

board dared to return to İstanbul in 1902 and attempted to restart the activities of the

society. Unfortunately, this second careful attempt was failed, too. Since, the official

116 Sencer, p.155117 Güzel, “Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”, p.809118 ibid, p.810

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administrators crushed the organization as it was heart that they will have made a

meeting in Topkapı.119

Besides these weak and short lived unionist activities among the workers, there

no existed such kind of corporation dealing with the working class. In the era between

1870 and 1908 which even any kind meeting was banned by the sultan, a little bit

amateur actions of the laborers to combine for seeking rights should be taken attention.

The Ottoman exact trade unionist activities have occurred after the Young Turks had c

the power in 1908. The period between 1870 and 1908 can be accepted the stage that

the Ottoman working class began to waking up slowly.

3.c- The Events in 1908 and Following Years until 1923

When the calendars was showing July of 1908, the Ottoman Empire have been

introduced a revolutionary era and crucial actions have changed the administration

deeply. The changing situation served a suitable atmosphere for emerging the unrests of

the depressed socio-political units. The demand of rights on each camp of the Ottoman

society began to be heart more soundly comparatively.

In the summer of 1908, the Ottoman newspapers were publishing the strike

events on several sides of İstanbul and Anatolia, nearly everyday. The workers

encouraged to request their ignored principal rights on both private and state sectors

with the previous experiences. 1908 was even the year of strikes which can even be

evaluated only; that’s to say that 1908 happened the golden age for striking workers,

119 Karakışla, p.26

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due to the fact that the numbers and frequency of those labor movements have

incredibly made huge increase in that unique year.

The one of the first serious strikes in 1908 was staged by the captains and the

crews of the Steamship Corporation (İdare-i Mahsusa) by stopping their daily voyages,

because of the very familiar causes, the unpaid wages.120 Then, at the same days, the

tobacco workers in Cibali, İstanbul began to an act of leaving jobs that have lasted for a

couple of weeks due to the same reasons. Also, the employees in railways ordered a

strike on which some officers have took place, too.121

The strikes in 1908 that was really called as “the strikes of July”122 influenced

and spread into different fields. The miners in Zonguldak who were belonged to Ereğli

Coal Company got allow a strike action by protesting the company and demanded the

cancellation of “the medicine deduction” from their salaries any more. The tension of

the strike crucially warned the administrators of the company, so they had to accept the

negotiation with the representatives of the workers and the demand of the laborers had

to be accepted.123

The similar reaction of the working people was seen in the Anatolian-

Baghdad Railways aiming to stop being worked under so awful circumstances. The

movement which was initiated in August, 1908 took a more significant strike action on

following months. Before the strike was triggered, they have script out a letter on which

the wishes were enlisted to the Prime Ministry (Sadaret). However, the workers had no

120 Tanin,(İstanbul), 04 B. 1326 [August 1,1908]121 Şanda, Yarı Müstemleke Oluş, p.27122 Işık,Yüksel, Osmanlı’dan Günümüze İşçi Hareketlerinin Evrimi(1876-1994), p.29123 Çıladır, Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-1940, p.93-94

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way other from leaving the jobs when their attempts were tried to be rested. The railway

company’s center in Berlin was looking at the labor unrest carefully because the interest

of the company on the Ottoman territories was under risk. As a result, the demands of

the workers had to be accepted by the employers.124Apart from this achievement, the

organizational success of the officers and the workers together has to be taken attention,

especially tries of the bureau of strike steered the workers very well during whole

event.125

Perhaps, the strangest event was that the bakers of İstanbul have participated

into the strike wave. The ordinary workers in baking sector complained about the

lowness of their fees and they stopped to work all together to threaten the owners of the

bakery. Even, some of them made a dominant attack to the bakery of Festaban.126 More

than 7000 bakers staged a meeting by requesting the increase on the wages from the

government of the CUP.127 The high rate of inflation and inadequate salaries to live in

the capital pushed the bakers to make strike. As the negotiations between the bakers and

the Commission of Bread (Ekmek Komisyonu) gave no positive result, the working

bakers ordered a general strike occupation in September, 1908.128

The temporary free atmosphere, too, encouraged some long shore men

employed in İzmir to want wage rise. Additionally to the requests, they wanted to be

improved their working conditions and 100% increase on the wages, so they became a

part on the strike trend. Nevertheless, the authorized ship agents rejected their demands,

a few of them had to make increment on the wages of the striking workers and to

124 Tanin (İstanbul), 06 Ş. 1326 [September 2, 1908], p.3125 Güzel, Şejmus, p.33-36,50126 Kırpık, p.238127 Karakışla, Y. Selim,“Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda 1908 Grevleri”, Toplum ve Bilim, s:78, Birikim Yayıncılık, İstanbul 1998, p.190128 ibid, p.191

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abridge the working hours at 1 to 3 rate.129 Because of same reasons, the tram laborers in

Göztepe, İzmir staged another strike.130

There existed about 100 strikes in those years, the sectoral division showed that

the new sectors could create strikes, too. At many cases, the striking workers have

declared their rights deprived for long years or they request practical wishes by

petitions. The unrests of the labors were so risen up that the huge amount of the actions

enforced the CUP government to take several measures to prevent them. Also, the rise

of the emerging on the trade unions among the laborers obligated the CUP made

restrictive laws against the uprisings. The government, just after the shaking events in

1908, produced the Law of Strike (Tatil-i Eşgal Kanunu) which contained some

limitations and forbids articles regarding with the labor movements alongside any union

within the Ottoman Empire, which have lasted until 1936. 131

On March, 1909, the steamships employees and civil servants of İdare-i

Mahsusa created a protest because of the fact that no ship was ordered to the Prince

Islands, İstanbul by the company. They were promised to be paid with their

accumulated salaries, but their movement was dispelled by armed forces as they decided

not to stop the demonstrations.132 A few weeks later, the laborers of port and customs

stuck due to the unpaid wages and so early hours to begin to work.

The news arriving from İzmir was pointing that some laborers have demanded

the right of meeting and making strike from the local government frequently, contrary

129 Berber, Engin, “II. Meşrutiyet Dönemi’nde Domino Etkisi Yapan Bir Eylem:İzmir Liman İşçileri”, European Journal of Turkish Studies, online since October 14, 2010, URL :http://ejts.revues.org/index4303.html, p.6-7130 İkdam (İstanbul), 13 B. 1326 [August 13, 1908], p.3131 Ökçün, A.Gündüz, Tatil-i Eşgal Kanunu,1909-Belgeler Yorumlar, Ankara 1982, p.1132 Tanin (İstanbul) 09 S. 1327 [March 2, 1909], p.2-3

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the governor of Aydın wanted to talk with those demanders not to realize any strike as

he promoted that their rights were already under the protection the existing laws. 133 It

have justified that those workers had a background on their unrests during their working

life.

The little community in İstanbul who had been employed in the gardens out

of Yedikule were desiring to make a strike movement by the aid of their unions as they

have requested the reduction on their work time. Nevertheless, just like other labor

requests were suffered, the demands did not welcome by the administrators; even if a

legal investigation and observation have been gotten allow about them, because the

petition directed by Mehmet Nuri and his mates was perceived as out of the laws.134 An

announcement before the case has been already saying that any workers who were

planning to stage a strike had to give information to the police departments, at least a

few days before the strike.135

In the pressure years, the workers in Paşapahçe Glass Factory get into a move

of leaving the jobs.136 Also, in Bursa, the Silk Industry employees resorted to the

Ministry of Commerce and Public Works in order to be made an increment on the daily

fees and reduced the working hours, the Ministry responded it by detecting there. 137 The

exact results of the event were not dealt with on the news. However, one year later it,

the mostly children and women in the same sectors in Bursa reorganized a new strike

with the previous wishes.138

133 BOA, DH. MKT, 2874 61, 13 July, 1909134 BOA, DH.MKT, 2734 22, 8 February, 1909135 BOA, DH.MKT, 2703 122, 11 January,1909136 Kırpık, p.239137 İkdam (İstanbul), 23 Ş. 1327 [ Semtember 9, 1909}, p.3-4138 Kırpık, p.240

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A group of Tram workers made a strike as some conflicts exited. The

representative community among the strikers could able to negotiate with the director

and the Minister of Public Works139 Additionally, a labor movement was met in

Kazlıçeşme leather factories, again in İstanbul on which a lot of workers carried on the

acts from 17 June and 1 August in 1910.140 They were generally failed, too like others141

It was even crime to spur the workers on making a strike in those times. For

example, those who were accused of the provocation the workers in Meskukat-ı

Osmaniye İdaresi (the Mint Department) for a strike had to face an enquiry

unfortunately.142 On July, 1910, the movements in Zonguldak have already about to

finish and the workers turned back to their jobs.143

Through 1910s, Sivas, one of the strongest locations on the Empire, met a labor

act which was shaped by about 1000 weavers working on the Oriental Carpet

Manufacture Co. (Şark Halı Şirketi). The cause of the rural movement was same with

the ones in metropolises: the increment on the wages.144 The tobacco workers in Cibali

have chosen the way of strike once again in April, 1911, which was approximately

participated by 2000-3000 labor force and continued a couple of weeks.145 The different

side of it was that the demonstrators were protesting the hiring friends by the bosses.

Also, the miners of Zonguldak were not reluctant to show their unrests sometimes in

1911.146

139 Gülmez, Mesut, 1983, p.406-407140 Karakışla, 1995, p.25141 Gülmez, Mesut, 1983, p.408142 BOA, DH.EUM. THR, 23 11, January 25, 1910143 Sencer, p.216-217144 Tanin (İstanbul), 05 B. 1329 [ July 2, 1911}, p.4145 Sencer, p.217-218146 Çıladır, Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-1940, p.95

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Now, The Anatolia was more ambitious. The railway workers in İzmir struck

to protest the insufficiency of payments and really high costs of living around the

summer of 1911.147 The coal transport laborers, in the last moths of 1910 first time, went

on to strike with the similar reasons on other cases, but they were oppressed by

arresting, it was out of laws actually, in January and February of 1911.148.

In same year, more than 1000 employees of railways staged out a strike in

Afyonkarahisar for a few days.149 Also, the factory workers united in İstanbul left their

jobs since they requested a holiday in a week.150 One month later, the civil servants and

laborers of the Aydın Railways decided to announce that they will have gone into strike

if their demands were not responded within 10 days.151

While the wars have made the life of ordinary people more difficult, the

tobacco workers in Cibali repeated their movements that were non-resulted until 1912

yet.152 Apart from the reactions of the way constructers in İznik and the ongoing events

were appeared, some particular labor movements continued to be seen like the Society

of Horse Riders (Arabacı Esnafı Cemiyeti) in İstanbul made in 1912. In the case, the

riders have been contradicted with the Municipality of İstanbul on some specific issues

such as high tax rates and giving back their captured cars. They could stop almost whole

transportation of the city and even destroyed the ways. The strikes of the riders spread

to nearby all county of İstanbul in which the disinclined riders to the action were

147 Kırpık, p.240148 BOA, DH.EUM.KDL, 3 44, January 5,1911/DH.ID, 106 16, February 1, 1911149 Sencer, p.219150 İkdam (İstanbul), 11 N. 1329 [September 5, 1911], p.3151 İkdam,(İstanbul), 25 N. 1329[ September 19, 1911], p.3152 Kırpık, p.240

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enforced to joint the strike. Nonetheless, they have never reached at the point what were

targeted before.153

On next year, the porters in İzmir reintroduced a new strike with the same

demand that was increment.154 Its influence can be observed in another move realized by

the railway workers and boaters in İzmir by leaving jobs in 1913.155 The strike of the

miners in Zonguldak-Ereğli coal basin in 1914156 and the tobacco workers in İzmir in

1915 were the important movements in the wartimes. The hopelessness of the Ottoman

government was so obvious that those were blamed of provocation the miners in Balya-

Karaaydın were immediately hired and were arrested; some of them were even Christian

workers.157

As the CUP government was holding under the strict control the strikes

during the Great War years158, seriousness of the labor movements in the Ottoman

Empire were cut until the end of the WWI. Since, it was too hard to keep a job for long

while. In an event in 1918 the actors was the miners in Kozlu Mines, but even just

before they started to the action, some among them, like Bekir Sıdkı was exiled to

Çorum as he was blamed of the provocation the laborers to the strike.159

The Invasion could not erase the unrest. There are many strikes on these crucial

days.160 The officers and the laborers in the Steamship Company (Şirket-i Hayriye)

made up an act of leaving job and protestation because their essential right of taking

153 Yakut, Kemal, “Arabacılar Grevi-1912”, Kebikeç Dergisi, v. 5, Ankara 1997, p.164-165154 Berber, Engin, 2010, p.8155 At the table of Şehmus Güzel,1996, p.64-67156 Çıladır, Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-1940, p.95157 BOA, DH.ID, 107 76, May 10,1914158 Şişmanov, Dimiter, p.56159 BOA, DH.EUM. 1.şb., 10 43, April 8, 1918160 At the table of Şehmus Güzel, 1996, p.111-112

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bread has been cancelled out by the company owners in the first days of 1919. The

workers of the Reggie located in the Capital stopped to work for an undecided while.161

On the same days, it was noticed that a unit of employees and machinists have staged an

intention of strike within the Ottoman Company (Şirket-i Osmaniye) in Zonguldak.162

The solidarity among the working people, particularly on some employees, was

so visible that the laborers working in the steamships of the Bosporus belonging to

Şirket-i Hayriye and who were the members of the Socialist Party of Turkey decided to

slow the jobs down with striking; nevertheless, the attempt was prevented rapidly and

the leader of the Party, Hüseyin Hilmi Bey had been exposed to attack physically.163

The proletariats could even react against the foreign invaders’ corporations

elsewhere. For instance, the all resisting national militias 164around Zonguldak basin in

20s were mostly occupied by the local workers from the villages on the region. Also,

thousands of workers voluntarily joint into the meetings aiming to protest the invasion

of İzmir.165

The strike of the workers of Tram Co. in İstanbul on May of 1920 was one of the

efficient events. In the action, the workers united and organized so successfully that it

could be ended wit the great achievements of the workers in terms of their willing such

as increment on the wages and diminishing the work hours.166 In following year, on the

same company, another labor unrest reoccurred by the direction of the Socialist Party;

161 Sencer, p.244-245162 BOA,DH.İ.UM, 19/05 1/86, April 8, 1919163 BOA,DH.EUM.AYŞ, 26 75, November 20, 1919164 Çıladır,Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-1940, p.114-115165 Güzel, Şehmus, p.120166 ibid, 115-116

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thus, it was passed on the state’ documents that the some group of strikers tried to hand

out an announcement praising the Bolshevism just after a meeting.167

Turkish workers even found to chance of celebration the May 1, the Day of

Workers in 1920 and 1921 in İstanbul with exited demonstrations that could not be

allowed since 1913; the workmen in İzmir and Ankara entered the amongst those who

was celebrating this important day initially in 1922. Many workers unions, primarily

TSP played crucial role on the meeting organizations.168

The labor force hoped many things from the revolution, but they suspended their

reactions for only short time and the experienced miners in Zonguldak, the fig pickers in

İzmir, the railway laborers in Aydın, the publishers in İstanbul, the beer workers in

Bomonti Factory, the employees of the Eastern Railways and the tram workers of

İstanbul fulfilled a series of strikes during July, August and following months of

1923.169 The most common reasons of these strikes was again focusing on the wage

problems, but the railway and tram workers had a list of demands to the responsible

ones on which placed on more specific and detailed requests. Unfortunately, the

demands of the labor force did not able to achieve a long lasted success.

The unionist activities just after strike waves in 1908 gained speed, so that the

free atmosphere introduced some trade unions which allowed to the Ottoman workers to

move together in a single unit. The founders of the old union, Ameleperver built up the

Society of Ottoman Progress (Osmanlı Terakki Cemiyeti) and the following the

Ottoman Printers’ Society (Mürettibin-i Osmanlı Cemiyeti) which tended to contact

167 BOA,DH.EUM.AYŞ, 57 13, October 24, 1921/ DH.KMS, 61-2 62, May 7, 1922168 Güzel, Şehmus, p.120-122169 Sencer, p.258-259

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with other unions in the world.170 Also, the Strike Law and the Law of Societies

(Cemiyetler Kanunu) in 1909 could not prevent the emergence of the new trade unions.

The Union of the Carpenters, the Society of the Dersaadet Tram Workers, the Society of

Martial Manufacture Workers (İmalat-ı Harbiye İşçileri Cemiyeti) and the Society of the

Reggie Tobacco Workers can be added to these unionist attempts towards 1910s in

several locations.171 The similar trend of union was brought in the Ottoman Anatolian

Railway White and Blue Collar Workers Solidarity Society and the Society of Oriental

Railways Workers which concerned the labor issues and transmission with the

employers.172 The Club of the Workers (Amele Kulübü) in İstanbul was efficient the

some social movements, in which the founders was members of the Society of

Dersaadet Sociological Studies (Dersaadet Tetebbuat-ı İçtimaiye Cemiyeti).173

As a socialist originated, The Ottoman Socialist Party in 1910 which has been

later reopened up in 1919 as Turkey Socialist Party realized and organized many serious

movements, especially after 1913, under the leadership of Hüseyin Hilmi as they have

been mentioned above. Its socialist publish organ, İştirak magazine tried to present the

Western originated socialist concepts to the Ottoman working class, but in 1910 and

1912, it was confronted with the closing as it was considered an opposition centers

against the policy of the CUP. The Marx and other European ideologists formed

İştirak’s definition and introduction of socialism. The enlightenment of the proletariat

Ottoman units was tried to be extended with articles and essays on the magazine.174

170 Gülmez, Mesut, 1985, p.800171 Makal, p.246172 Karakışla, 1995, p.27173 Güzel, Şehmus, p.97174 Tekin, Yusuf, “Türkiye’de ilk Sosyalist Hareket “İştirak Çevresi”nin Sosyalizm Anlayışı Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme”, Ankara Üniversitesi SBF Dergisi, v: 57, Ankara 2002, p.172-177

49

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The porters unions in İzmir and the miners’ society in Zonguldak can be given

as an example of trade unions at that time; the bakers, the workers linked to the tobacco

manufacture and even the carriers could improve some kind of labor organizations

among each others that might not be classified within the syndics of Ottoman.175 There

existed some specialist unions or societies turned towards women workers like the

Islamic Society of Employ the Women (Kadınları Çalıştırma Cemiyeti İslamiyesi) that

purposed “to locate the women to the works that they can do it”.176

There could be exited trade unions in invasion and resistance period. The

Socialist Peasants and Workers Party of Turkey (Türkiye İşçi ve Çiftçi Sosyalist Partisi)

was labor initiative of that era which was established in October, 1919 and attracted

about 2000 workers into the organization. The Party, even though, could not put any

member of parliamentary in İstanbul, its organizational success was felt among the

labor unions very well. It significantly caused the establishment of the General

Workers’ Association of Turkey (Umum Türkiye İşçileri Derneği). Meanwhile, “the

International Workers’ Union (Beynelmilel İşçiler İttihadi) had nine branches and more

than 4000 members, 1000 whom were Turks.177

In İstanbul, some unions have occurred and tried to work up regularly; the

Society of Anatolian Railway Workers (Anadolu Şimendifer Amelesi Cemiyeti), the

Society of Kasımpaşa Ship Voyage Workers (Kasımpaşa Seyrisefain Amelesi Cemiyeti)

and the Society of Tram Company Workers was the amongst the labor unions of the

time. Besides these organizations, International Sea Workers’ Union (Beynelmilel

Deniz İşçileri İttihadi), the International Carpenters’ Union (Beynelmilel Marangoz

175 Sencer, p.228176 Erişçi,Lütfi, p.95177 Karakışla, 1995, p.28

50

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İşçileri İttihadi) and finally the International Constructers’ Union (Beynelmilel Bina

İşçileri İttihadi) was active on the workers issues as dependent to the International

Workers’ Union in İstanbul.178

The other labor unions were those; The Society of Workers of İstanbul and İzmir,

the Society of Printer Workers, the Society of Aydın Railway Workers, The Society of

Electric Workers, the Society of the Terkos Company Workers, Zonguldak Workers’

Union, Balya Karaaydın Workers’ Union and after 1921, the Oriental Railways Blue

Collars Solidarity Society (Şark Şimendiferleri Müstahdemin Teavün Cemiyeti).179

Some of those societies lasted in the first years of Turkey.

The Communist Party of Turkey had fulfilled its first conference in Baku in

October, 1920 and then the Green Army (Yeşil Ordu) was the political occupations

which promoted the workers issues within the socialist aims in such complicated

periods. However, the Green Army had dispersed in short time and those who brought

out it, mostly martial manufacture workers, set up the Party of Public Partnership

( Halk İştirakiyun Partisi); amongst them the Communist Party appeared. Just one year

later, the primary of them was canceled out by government the National Assembly in

Ankara because of the fact that its socialist tendency was perceived harmful to the new

order.180 The end of the Turkey Communist Party did not differ from them, so the leader

of the movement Mustafa Suphi and some friends was massacred in 1921 and the first

leftist attempts of Turkey was injured dramatically. Şehmus Güzel has argues that the

attack of Kemalists against the socialists had started.181

178 Erişçi,Lütfi, p.97179 Sencer, p.265180 Erişçi,Lütfi, p.98-99181 Güzel, Şehmus, p.123

51

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The labor unions in İstanbul and different locations of Anatolia took acceleration

and diversion in the first months of the Turkish Revolution in 1923 and 1924. Those

were: the Society of Bosporus Company Workers, the Society of Silahtarağa Electricity

Faactory Workers, The Society of İstanbul General Sea and Coalmine Loading and

Transportation Workers, Dessaadet Biladıselase Construction, Road Farmer and

Farmhand Workers, the Society of the Tobacco Factory Workers’ Union, the Society of

İstanbul Tram Workers, the Society of Printers, the Society of Anatolian-Baghdad

Railways Workers in İstanbul; Aydın Railways Workers and Officers’ Union, the Society

of the Refugee and Migrant Workers, the Society of Tobacco Workers, the Railways

Factory Workers’ Union, the Society of Tram Workers, the Society of Port Steamship

and Coal Workers, the Society of Workers of Mavuna, the Port Dock Import and Export

Workers, the Solidarity Society of Independent Port Steamship Workers and the

Solidarity Society of Construction and Metal Materials Workers in İzmir; the

Association of Workers of Turkey, the Solidarity Society of Oriental Railways Workers

in Edirne; the Society of Workers Advance in Adana; the Workers’ Society in Konya; the

Society of Tobacco Leaf Workers in Bursa; and the Society of Anatolian Baghdad

Railways Workers in Eskişehir.182

182 Sencer, p.265-266/Erişçi, Lütfi, p.100-101

52

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CONCLUSION

To sum up, the labor movements that began to appear after the half of the 19 th

century in the Ottoman Empire have gained speed in the first decades of the 20th

century. They could hold important place among the social movements in the last years

of the Empire. The transformation of the whole structure according to the modern

Western typology had showed itself on these strange actions and the newly emerging

class started to express their wants in the ways of that had never been confronted before.

As a way of seeking the rights, the strikes have come up more eligible among the

workers; on the contrary, their uprising have generally been seen as a source of problem

that could affect their links between the foreign investors negatively. The official

ideology of the state preferred the restriction of them by new regulation instead of

making radical renovations on the condition of the labor force.

All pessimistic atmospheres would never give up the poor workers, but they

continued the movements with insistence. Because, they had no other choice; they

either will have gone on to be crushed or they will demand their rights. By the time, this

trend have turned into the organizational occupations with trade unions that increased

53

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numerical and influentially. In the first cases, the strike makers could not reached at the

expected achievement and the requests that can be generally combined around the wage

issue would not accepted by the state or the companies. It was the most preferable

method to diffuse the strikes or demonstrations by using force, especially during the

reign of Abdülhamid II. Furthermore, the letters and petitions to the Sultan or the

departments could not offset the laborers’ wishes. That made lots of the movements

failed.

It should be denoted that the Ottoman labor movements were not effective as

much as it realized in Europe. The characteristic difference between two parts can even

be observed in the events in various places of the Empire; the movements in Balkans, or

in Anatolia, or in İstanbul progressed in different intense and velocity. Some times, the

workers in a region were inspired to make a movement by looking at another region.

However, it is so hard to say that there has existed a sort of collaboration or unity

among the workers of distant locations. That’s why, the movements have remained so

rare and local and they could not widespread around whole territories till the strike

wave in 1908.

As like on the actions, the socialist ideologies that were born in Europe could not

find out the chance to spread among the Ottoman working units until they met the

revolution in 1908. Although the Ottoman intellectuals tried to watch the developments

in Europe that have produced new solution and unprecedented ways in the workers’

conditions, the massive units were devoid of the positive results of these modern

matters. The magazine of İştirak attempted to inject the socialist patterns to workers

after 1910; however, its field of impact remained limited because of the low zeal of the

54

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laborers towards the intellectual life and the high government pressure implied by the

CUP. The partisans of the socialism made only efforts to keep alive this occupation. By

the establishment of the communist parties in following years, similar ideologies did

more marginalize than the other ones.

The most striking result of the labor movements was probably codification of the

Strike Law in 1909 by the CUP. It was so contradictory with the government’s liberal

speeches; at the same time, it was the most obvious and powerful evidence of that the

combined action of the workers can signal out the state to measure serious and radical

treatment against the destructive consequences of the movements. It could not be

defined that the 1908 wave was an organized and ordered event, but the increase on the

number of the strikes enforced the state to prevent them immediately. In addition to the

legal precautions, the politico-economic changes come with the traumatic wars become

important factor on the diminishing the labor movements.

To conclude, the labor movements in the Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia from

1870 until the 1923 helped to shape the workers’ consciousness of the Turkish laborers

who lived there. It is a still debatable whether workers of those times had a sort of class

consciousness or they could learn to move in a single unit to seeking their rights against

the employers. However, the experiences of the Ottoman proletariats were very valuable

examples for the working class of the Republic of Turkey. These actions that had been

born in modern period are still offering significant information to shed light on the

historical developments of the Turkish labor movements and in parallel the leftist

occurrence in Turkey.

55

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Berber, Engin, “II. Meşrutiyet Dönemi’nde Domino Etkisi Yapan Bir

Eylem:İzmir Liman İşçileri”, European Journal of Turkish Studies, online since October

14, 2010, url: http://ejts.revues.org/index4303.html, pp.1-24

Çelik, Birten, “Osmanlı İşçi Tarihi ve Türkiye: Genel Bir

Değerlendirme” XIV.Türk Tarih Kongresi, Ankara:9-13 Eylül 2002, Kongreye Sunulan

Bildiriler, v.II, part II, Ankara:TTK 2006, pp.1059-1079

Çıladır, Sina, Zonguldak Havzası’nda İşçi Hareketlerinin Tarihi-1848-

1940, Yeraltı Maden-İş Yayınları, Ankara 1977

Erişçi, Lütfi, Türkiye İşçi Sınıfının Tarihi (Özet olarak), Kebikeç,

Ankara 1997

Fişek, Kurthan, Türkiye’de Kapitalizmin Gelişmesi ve İşçi Sınıfı, Doğan

Yayınevi, Ankara 1969

Gülmez, Mesut, Türkiye’de Çalışma İlişkileri(1936 öncesi), Sevinç

Matbaası, Ankara 1983

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Page 57: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

______________, “Tanzimat’tan Sonra İşçi Örgütlenmesi ve Çalışma

Koşulları (1839-1919)”, Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e Türkiye Ansiklopedisi, v:3,

İletişim Yayınları, İstanbul 1985, pp.792-801

Güzel, M. Şehmus, Türkiye’de İşçi Hareketleri-1908-1984, Kaynak

Yayınları, İstanbul 1996

______________, “Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”,

Tanzimat’tan Cumhuriyet’e Türkiye Ansiklopedisi, v.3, İstanbul 1985, pp.803-827

Işık,Yüksel, Osmanlı’dan Günümüze İşçi Hareketlerinin Evrimi(1876-

1994), Öteki yayınevi, Ankara 1995

İnalcık, Halil, “Evolution of the Ottoman Monetary System”, An

Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300-1914, with Donald

Quataert ,Cambridge University Press, New York, 1997

Karakışla, Y. Selim, “The Emergence of The Ottoman Industrial Working

Class,1839-1923”, Workers and the Working Class in the Ottoman Empire and the

Turkish Republic, 1839-1950 edited by Donald Quataert and Erik Jan

Zürcher,London ; New York : Tauris Academic Studies in Association with the

International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam 1995

______________ “Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda 1908 Grevleri”, Toplum ve

Bilim, v:78, Birikim Yayıncılık, İstanbul 1998,pp.187-209

Kırpık,Cevdet, Laborers and Labor Movements in the Ottoman

Empire(1876-1914), Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Tarih

Anabilim Dalı, Isparta 2004

Koç,Yıldırım, Türkiye'de İşçi Sınıfı ve Sendikacılık Tarihi, Yorum Basın

Yayın, Ankara 1996

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Makal,Ahmet, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nda Çalışma İlişkileri :1850-1920 :

Türkiye çalışma ilişkileri tarihi İmge Kitabevi, Ankara 1997

Mantran, Robert, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu Tarihi-II(XIX. YY. Başlarından

Yıkılışa), trans. by Server Tanilli, v:2, Adam Yayınları, İstanbul 2002

Ökçün, A.Gündüz, Tatil-i Eşgal Kanunu,1909-Belgeler Yorumlar, Ankara

1982

Quateart, Donald, Osmanlı Devleti'nde Avrupa İktisadi Yayılımı ve Direniş

(1881-1908), Yurt Yayınevi, Ankara 1987

___________ “ Age of the Reforms”, An Economic and SocialHistory of the

Ottoman Empire, 1300-1914 edited by Halil Inalcik with Donald Quataert ,Cambridge

University Press, New York 1997

Sencer, Oya, Türkiye'de İşçi Sınıfının: Doğuşu ve Yapısı, Habora

Kitabevi, İstanbul 1969

Shaw,Stanford J. and Ezel Kural The History of Ottoman Empire and the

Modern Turkey 1808-1975, Cambridge University Press, New York 1995

Şanda, H. A., Yarı Müstemleke Oluş Tarihi/1908 İşçi

Hareketleri, Gözlem Yayınları, İstanbul 1978

Şişmanov, Dimitir, Türkiye İşçi ve Sosyalist Hareketi, trans. by Ayşe and

Ragıp Zarkolu, Belge Yayınları, İstanbul 1990

Tekin, Yusuf, “Türkiye’de ilk Sosyalist Hareket “İştirak Çevresi”nin

Sosyalizm Anlayışı Üzerine Bir Değerlendirme”, Ankara Üniversitesi SBF Dergisi, v:

57, Ankara 2002, pp.171-184

Yakut, Kemal, “Arabacılar Grevi-1912”, Kebikeç Dergisi, v: 5, Ankara

1997, pp.163-181

Primary Sources:

58

Page 59: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

BOA, Dahiliye, Emniyet-i Umumiye (DH.EUM)

____, Asayiş Kalemi (DH.EUM.AYŞ)

____, Kısm-i Adli Kalemi (DH.EUM.KDL)

____, Kalem-i Mahsus (DH.KMS)

____, Mektubi Kalemi(DH. MKT)

____,Tahrirat Kalemi Belgeleri(DH.EUM. THR)

____,İdare Kısım Belgeleri (DH.ID)

____,İdare-i Umumiye (DH.İ.UM)

____,Zabtiye Nezareti Evrakı (ZB)

BEO, Bahriye

Newspapers: Tanin and İkdam, (İstanbul)

APPENDIX

Table 1: The Strikes before 1908 in the Otoman Empire

Grev

Nr.

Yõllar

Başlangõç veya

bitiş tarihleri

İşkollarõ

İşletme/Şirket/İşyeri/ İşçi

Grubu

Kent

Grevci

Sayõsõ

1 1876 18 Şubat Gemi

yapõmõ

Hasköy tersane işçileri İstanbul

2 1876 28 Şubat Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Haydarpaşa-İzmit

demiryolu

İstanbul

3 1876 20 Mart Dokuma İzmir terzi işçileri İzmir

4 1876 9 Nisan Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul 1.000

5 1876 12 Nisan Metal Darphane işçileri İstanbul

6 1876 18 Nisan Metal Fişekhane işçileri İstanbul 200-

300

7 1876 22 Mayõs Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul 200-

300

8 1876 22 Ağustos Dokuma Feshane işçileri İstanbul 50

9 1878 15 Ekim İnşaat Duvarcõlar İstanbul

10 1878 15 Ekim Deri Ayakkabõcõlar İstanbul

11 1878 15 Ekim Dokuma Terzi işçileri İstanbul

12 1879 10 Mart İnşaat Yapõ işçileri İstanbul 500

59

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13 1879 25 Mart Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şirket-i Hayriye işçileri İstanbul

14 1879 22 Mayõs Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şirket-i Hayriye işçileri861 İstanbul

15 1879 10 Temmuz Ticaret,

büro

Muhasebe bürosu

çalõşanlarõ

Selanik

16 1879 17 Temmuz Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

17 1879

31 Aralõk Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

18 1880 3 Şubat Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i Mahsusa işçileri İstanbul

19 1880 27 Şubat Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Haydarpaşa-İzmit

demiryolu işçileri

İstanbul 75

20 1880 13 Haziran Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõk

Haydarpaşa-İzmit

demiryolu çalõşanlarõ

İstanbul

21 1880 24 Kasõm Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Haliç Vapur Şirketi İşçileri İstanbul

22 1881 30 Temmuz Silah

yapõmõ

Zeytinburnu Fabrika-yõ

Hümayunu

İstanbul 30-40

23 1882 12 Ekim Deri Tatavla kunduracõlarõ İstanbul

24 1885 9 Nisan Ağaç Odunkapõ odun biçme

işçileri

İstanbul

25 1886 1 Şubat Ticaret,

büro

Beyoğlu M. İşçileri İstanbul

26 1886 23 Ağustos Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

27 1888 22 Nisan Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

28 1888 24 Mayõs Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

29 1891 27 Mart Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i Mahsusa Fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul

30 1891 25 Haziran Deniz taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i Mahsusa işçileri İstanbul

31 1892 26-27 Mayõs Gõda Harman işçileri İstanbul

32 1893 26 Nisan Gõda Cibali Tütün Fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul

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33 1895 9 Ocak Kimya Çubuklu İspermeçet

Fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul

34 1902 Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

35 1902 1 Mayõs Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i Mahsusa işçileri İstanbul

36 1903 Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

37 1904 24 Mart Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

38 1904 30 Kasõm Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

39 1904 30 Kasõm Gõda Selanik Reji işçileri Selanik

40 1904 Gõda Tütün işçileri Kavala 8.000

41 1904 Gõda Tütün Rejisi işçileri Selanik

42 1904 Deri Kunduracõ işçileri Selanik 50

43 1904 Deri Kunduracõ işçileri Bitolia

(Manastır)

150

441904 Gõda Fõrõn işçileri Bitolia(

Manastõ

r)

45 1905 Dokuma Dokuma işçileri İstanbul

46 1905 Dokuma Dokuma işçileri Selanik

47 1905 Dokuma Dokuma işçileri Sketcha

48 1905 Dokuma Dokuma işçileri Voden

1905 Deri Tabakhane işçileri İstanbul 800

50 1906 Deri Kunduracõ işçileri Veles 150

51 1906 Deri Kunduracõ işçileri Skopie(

Üsküp)

70

52 1906 3 Mart Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

53 1906 Dokuma Kaftancõ işçileri Skopie(

Üsküp)

40

54 1906 29 Mart Gõda Cibali Tütün Fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul 2.000

55 1906 14 Nisan Taşõma Karaağaç ve Bahariye’deki

mavnacõlar

Edirne-

Gümilci

ne -

İskeçe

61

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56 1906 Dokuma Terzi işçileri Veles

57 1906 Ağaç Marangoz işçileri Selanik

58 1906 Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri İstanbul

59 1906 Ağustos Basõn,

yayõn

Mürettipler İstanbul

60 1906 Metal Demir işçileri Selanik

61 1906 Deri Kunduracõ işçileri Selanik

62 1906 Çimento,

toprak,cam

Allatini seramik fabrikasõ

işçileri

Selanik

63 1907 29 Haziran Taşõmacõlõk Dersaadet Rõhtõm Şirketi

Hamallarõ

İstanbul

13

64 1907 8 Temmuz Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul 9

65 1907 19 Temmuz Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul 300-

500

66 1908 Mart Gemi

yapõmõ

Tersane işçileri İstanbul

Sources: Güzel, “İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”, 1985, p.805/Kırpık, pp.250-253

Table 2: The Strikes of 1908

Grev

No

Başlangõç ve

Bitiş Tarihleri

İşkollarõ İşletme/Şirket/İşyeri/

İşçi grubu

Kent Grevci

Sayõsõ

1 31 Temmuz

( birkaç saatlik )

Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i Mahsusa Vapurlarõ

ve mürettebatõ

İstanbul

2 31 Temmuz-14

Ağustos

Gõda sanayi Cibali Tütün Rejisi işçileri İstanbul

3 Ağustos başõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri İstanbul

4 Ağustos başõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri Selanik 800

5 Ağustos başõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri İzmir

6 5 Ağustos Basõn ve

yayõn

Mürettipler İstanbul

7 8 Ağustos Dokuma “carmadon” halõ fabrikasõ

işçileri

İzmir 50

62

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8 10 Ağustos Gõda sanayi İncir kutusu imalâthanesi

işçileri

İzmir

9 11 Ağustos Çimento,

toprak, cam

Paşabahçe cam

imalâthanesi işçileri

İstanbul

10 12 Ağustos- 13 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Aksaray, Şişli,

Beşiktaş,Tramvay hatlarõ

işçileri (Dersaadet

Tramvay Şirketi )

İstanbul

11 23 Ağustos Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Aksaray, Şişli, Beşiktaş,

Tramvay hatlarõ işçileri

(Dersaadet Tramvay

Şirketi )

İstanbul

12 2 Eylül

( kõsa bir süre için)

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Aksaray, Şişli,

Beşiktaş,Tramvay hatlarõ

işçileri (Dersaadet

Tramvay Şirketi )

İstanbul

13 15-16 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Aksaray, Şişli, Beşiktaş,

Tramvay hatlarõ işçileri

(Dersaadet Tramvay

Şirketi )

İstanbul

14 12 Ağustos Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Vapurlara kömür yükleyen

işçiler

İstanbul

15 15-16 Ağustos Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri Beyrut 105

16 17 Ağustos Gõda Fõrõn işçileri İstanbul

17 22-31 Ağustos Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri Beyrut 105

18 Ağustos ilk yarõsõ Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Tramvay sürücü ve işçileri İzmir

19 Ağustos ilk yarõsõ

Eylül ortasõ

Ağaç Marangoz işçileri İzmir

20 Ağustos ilk yarõsõ Dokuma “Levant” Sanayi Şirketi

iplikçi ve boyacõ işçileri

İzmir

21 Ağustos ilk yarõsõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri Midilli

63

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22 Ağustos ilk yarõsõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri Varna

23 Ağustos ortasõ Gõda Tütün ticarethane ve

atölye işçileri

Samsun 1500

24 17 Ağustos Enerji Üsküdar- Kadõköy Su

Şirketi işçileri

İstanbul

25 18 Ağustos Dokuma Yedikule İplik Fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul

26 18 Ağustos Gõda Üsküdar Su Şirketi işçileri İstanbul

27 18 Ağustos Basõn Yayõn Galata’da ismi belli

olmayan bir matbaanõn

işçileri

İstanbul

28 19 Ağustos Çimento Linardos(?) Çimento

fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul 24

29 19-20 Ağustos Basõn ve

Yayõn

Galata Bölgesi

Mürettipleri

İstanbul

30 22 Ağustos Gõda İstanbul fõrõnlarõ hamurcu

pişirici ve çõraklarõ

50

31 16 Eylül Gõda İstanbul fõrõnlarõ hamurcu

pişirici ve çõraklarõ

00

32 23 Ağustos Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şark Demiryollarõ Şirketi

gündelikçi işçileri

Üsküp

34 18-25 Ağustos Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Selanik

35 Eylül başõ 11 eylül Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Selanik

36 24-25 Eylül Gõda “Olympos”buz fabrikasõ

işçileri

Selanik

37 25 Ağustos ( yeniden

)

Çimento

toprak cam

“Olympos” buz fabrikasõ

işçileri

Selanik

38 24 Ağustos Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şark Demiryollarõ Şirketi

gündelikçi işçileri

Selanik

39 24 Ağustos Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Selanik-İstanbul Hattõ

Demiryolu şirketi iskele

işçileri

Selanik

40 24 Ağustos Gõda Fõrõn işçileri Selanik 1000

41 Ağustos Gõda Sabun imalâthaneleri

işçileri

Selanik 500

42 Ağustos Çimento

toprak cam

“Allatini” Biriket ve tuğla

Fabrikasõ işçileri

Selanik 2000

64

Page 65: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

43 Ağustos Gõda “Allatini” Un Fabrikasõ Selanik 100

44 Ağustos Konaklama ve eğlence

yerleri

“Olympos” Bira Fabrikasõişçileri

Selanik 120

45 Ağustos Gõda Tütün Rejisi Sigara

Fabrikasõ işçileri

Selanik 500

46 Ağustos Gemi

( yapõmõ)

Tersane İşçileri Selanik 800

47 Ağustos Ticaret,

büro, eğitim

ve güzel

sanatlar

“Orosdi- Back” mağazasõ

postacõ ve komileri

Selanik 95

48 Ağustos Metal “Benforado” teneke

imalâthanesi

Selanik 22

49 Ağustos sonu

9 Eylül

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Selanik-Manastõr hattõ

demiryolu şirketi işçileri

Selanik ve

Manastõr

50 28 Ağustos

(24 saat)

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Sirkeci şimendifer

Fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul

51 28 Ağustos Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Yedikule şimendifer

Fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul 200

52 28 Ağustos

11 Eylül

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Selanik- İstanbul hattõ

şirketi memur ve işçileri

Selanik

Dedeağaç

İstanbul

( Sirkeci)

1500

53 18 Eylül ( yeniden) Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Selanik- İstanbul hattõ

şirketi memur ve işçileri

Selanik

Dedeağaç

İstanbul

( Sirkeci)

1500

54 31 Ağustos

4 Eylül

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir- Aydõn Demiryolu

Şirketi memur ve işçileri

Aydõn ve

İzmir

55 1-4 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir- Aydõn Demiryolu

Şirketi memur ve işçileri

Aydõn-Dinar Hattõ memur

ve işçileri

Aydõn ve

Dinar

56 5 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Rumeli Demiryolu

çalõşanlarõ

İstanbul

65

Page 66: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

57 Eylül’ün ikinci

Haftasõnda

( 24 saatlik grev)

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir- Aydõn Demiryolu

Şirketi memur ve işçileri

İzmir,Ayd

õn ve

Dinar

58 26 Eylül-7 Ekim Demiryolu taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir- Aydõn Demiryolu Şirketi memur ve işçileri

İzmir,Ayd õnve

Dinar

59 Eylül başõ Haberleşme Devlet Telgraf İdaresi

memur ve işçileri

Selanik

60 Eylül başõ Gõda Tütün ticarethanesi

işçileri

Selanik

61 Eylül başõ

11 Eylül

Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Elektrikli tramvay Şirketi

işçileri

Selanik

62 Eylül başõ Dokuma “Bouted” Kardeşler İpek

İplik Atölyeleri işçileri

Gevgeli 200

63 2 Eylül Deri Kazlõçeşme

Debbağhaneleri işçileri

İstanbul

64 5 Eylül Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şirket-i hayriye Fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul

65 5-9 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir- Göztepe Tramvay

Şirketi işçileri

İzmir

66 9 Eylül Ticaret Büro

Eğitim ve

güzel

sanatlar

“Errera”mağazalarõ

işçileri

Selanik

67 10-12 Eylül Ticaret Büro

Eğitim ve

güzel

sanatlar

Yunanlõlara ait tüm

bakkal, şarküteri berber

dükkanlarõ çõrak

Kalfa ve işçileri

Selanik

68 10-12 Eylül Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

Yunanlõlara ait tüm

kahvehane birahane otel

lokanta ve gazino işçileri

Selanik

69 Eylül’ün ilk

Yarõsõ

Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Hamidiye Şirketi İzmir

Körfezi Vapur İşletmesi

İşçileri

İzmir

70 13 Eylül Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Kavala 12000

71 13 Eylül Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Drama 2000

66

Page 67: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

72 14-18 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Anadolu-Bağdat

Demiryolu şirketi

Memur ve işçileri

İstanbul

Eskişehir

Ankara

Konya

Bulgurlu

(Sadece

İstanbul’d

a

900 grevci

73 14 Eylül Madencilik Zonguldak-Ereğli Kömür Madeni Şirketi İşçileri

Zonguldak ve ere

Ereğli

74 Eylül ortasõ Gõda Tütün Ticarethane

ve atölye işçileri

Samsun

75 14 Eylül Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şirket-i hayriye deniz

İşçileri(makinist, tayfa,

kaptan, memur ve işçileri

İstanbul

76 23 Eylül Gemi

(yapõmõ )

Şirket-i Hayriye Hasköy

Tersanesi işçileri

İstanbul

77 15 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir-Kasaba ve Temdidi

Demiryolu Şirketi işçileri

İzmir ve

Kasaba

78 17 Eylül Deniz

taşõmacõlõğõ

İdare-i mahsusa deniz

işçileri

İstanbul

79 17 Eylül Basõn ve

yayõn

Matbuat işçileri İstanbul

80 Eylül ortasõ Enerji Havagazõ işçileri Selanik

81 Eylül ortasõ Basõn ve

yayõn

Matbaa işçileri Selanik

82 Eylül ortasõ Gõda Şeker imalâthaneleri

işçileri

Selanik

83 Eylül ortasõ Dokuma Deri mağazalarõ işçileri Selanik

84 Eylül ortasõ Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Gümrük yükleme

Boşaltma işçileri

Midilli

85 18-21 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şark demiryollarõ şirketi

Memur ve işçileri

İstanbul

( Sirkeci )

Edirne

Mustafapa

şa

Selanik

Mitrovitza

Üsküp ve

Zibektşe

3000

67

Page 68: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

86 22 Eylül

Ekim başõ

Tecaret büro “Orosdi- Back”mağazalarõ

işçileri

İstanbul 1500

87 22 Eylül

Ekim başõ

Tecaret büro “Orosdi- Back”mağazalarõ

işçileri

Selanik

88 23 Eylül Dokuma Feshane-i Âmire memur

ve işçileri

İstanbul

89 27-29 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Beyrut-Şam Hama ve

Temdidi Demiryolu şirketi

Memur ve işçileri

Beyrut,

Şam,

Rayak,

Halep

90 30 Eylül Genel işler İstanbul belediyesi 1.

Daire temizlik işçileri

İstanbul

91 Eylül sonu Madencilik Balya-Karaaydõn simli

Kurşun madeni işçileri

Balya-

Karaaydõn

92 Eylül sonu Madencilik Ergani Bakõr Madeni

Şirketi işçileri

Ergani

93 Eylül sonu Gõda Sabunhane ve Zeytinyağõ

İmalâthaneleri işçileri

Midilli

94 Eylül sonu Ticaret,

Büro

“Au bon Marche”

mağazalarõ işçileri

İstanbul

95 Eylül sonu Ticaret,

Büro

“Au Lion” mağazalarõ

işçileri

İstanbul

96 Eylül sonu Dokuma Hareke dokuma fabrikasõ

işçileri

Hareke

97 Eylül sonu Gõda Fõrõn işçileri Manastõr

98 Eylül sonu Metal “Singer” şirketi işçileri Üsküp

99 Eylül sonu Gõda Reji Tütün işçileri Ksanthi

100 Eylül sonu Ticaret,

Büro

“Errera” mağazalarõ

işçileri

İzmir

101 Eylül sonu Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Hasan Ağa deposu

işçileri

Ksanthi

102 Eylül sonu Çimento

toprak

Cam

Kireçocağõ işçileri Kireçköy

( Selanik )

103 Eylül sonu Tarõm Pamuk işçileri Adana

104 Ekim başõ Dokuma Yazmacõ çõrak kalfa ve

işçileri

İstanbul

68

Page 69: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

105 Ekim başõ Çimento

toprak

Cam

Büyükdere Tuğla

Harmanlarõ işçileri

İstanbul

106 Ekim başõ Dokuma Terzihaneler çõrak ve

işçileri

Midilli

107 Ekim başõ Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Samsun

108 2-4 Ekim Enerji Beyrut gaz şirketi işçileri Beyrut

109 4 Ekim Gõda Fõrõn İşçileri İstanbul

110 4 Ekim Genel İşler İstanbul belediyesi 6.

Daire temizlik işçileri

İstanbul

111 13 Ekim Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

“Londra” birahanesi

garsonlarõ

İstanbul

112 14-16 Ekim Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

“Tokatlõyan” işletmeci

garsonlarõ

İstanbul

113 16 Ekim Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

“Yani” Birahanesi

garsonlarõ

İstanbul

114 16 Ekim Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

“Pera Palas” garson ve

işçileri

İstanbul

115 20 Ekim-22 Ekim

( yeniden )

Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

“Pera Palas” garson ve

işçileri

İstanbul

116 16 Ekim Konaklama

ve eğlence

yerleri

Beyoğlu kahvehane

garsonlarõ

İstanbul

117 30 Ekim Madencilik Foça maden işçileri Foça

118 5 Aralõk Basõn ve

yayõn

Matbaa işçileri Kudüs

119 20 Aralõk Demiryolu

Taşõmacõlõğõ

Şişli Tramvay hattõnda

çalõşanlar

İstanbul

Sources: Güzel, “İşçi Hareketleri ve Grevler”, 1985, pp.811-815/ Kırpık, pp.256-263

Table 3:The Strikes in 1909-1914

69

Page 70: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

Grev nr. Yõllar Başlangõç ve

bitiş tarihleri

İşkollarõ İşletme/ şirket/işyeri/

İşçi grubu

Kent Grevci

sayõsõ

1 1909 20 Mart Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Gümrük hamallarõ İstanbul 8000

2 1909 Mart sonlarõ Cam sanayi Paşabahçe şişe

fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul

3 1909 3 Nisan Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Rõhtõm işçileri İstanbul

4 1909 Nisan ortalarõ Gemi yapõmõ Tersane işçileri İstanbul

5 1909 10 Haziran

( 24 saat )

Madencilik Zonguldak- Ereğli

Kömür

Madeni Şirketi

işçileri

Kelik /

Zonguldak

6 1909 3 Kasõm Gõda sanayi Hasan Ağa Tütün

deposu İşçileri

Ksanthi 62

7 1909 Kasõm Ticaret Büro “ Errera” mağazalarõ

işçileri

İzmir 67

8 1910 Mart sonu

Nisan başlarõ

Demiryolu

Taşõmacõlõğõ

Dersaadet Tarmvay

Şirketi çalõşanlarõ

İstanbul

9 1910 18-22 Mayõs Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Dersaadet

Tramvay

Şirketi işçileri

İstanbul

10 1910 20 Mayõs Dokuma Terzihane işçileri İstanbul

11 1910 Mayõs Gõda sanayii Tütün rejisi işçileri İstanbul

12 1910 Mayõs Deri Kundura

imalâthaneleri

İşçileri

İstanbul 420

13 1910 17 Haziran

1 Ağustos

Deri Kazlõçeşme

debbağhaneleri

işçileri

İstanbul

14 1910 21 Haziran Deri “Recep Aslan “

kundura

imalâthanesi işçileri

Selanik 59

15 1910 8 Temmuz Dokuma Terzihaneler işçileri Selanik 93

16 1910 Temmuz Madencilik Zonguldak- Ereğli

Kömür Madeni Şirketi

işçileri

Zonguldak

17 1910 18 Ağustos Dokuma Bursa ve Bilecik ipek

ve halõ fabrikalarõ

işçileri

Bursa ve

Bilecik

70

Page 71: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

18 1910 23 Ağustos Deri Kundura

imalâthaneleri

İşçileri

Üsküp

19 1910 23 Ağustos Deri Kundura

imalâthaneleri

İşçileri

Topolov

20 1910 Ağustos Dokuma “Kazas” İplik

fabrikasõ işçileri

Dihovo

Manastõr

21 1910 30 Ağustos Dokuma İpek işçileri Bursa 3000

22 1910 30 Ağustos Dokuma İpek işçileri Bilecik 1000

23 1911 10 Ekim Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

İstanbul Limanõ

hamallarõ

İstanbul Yaklaşõ

k 2.000

24 1910 11 Ekim Madencilik Zonguldak- Ereğli

Kömür

Madeni Şirketi

işçileri

Zonguldak 500

25 1910 Ekim sonu Metal Şemsiye atölyeleri

işçileri

İstanbul

26 1911 Ocak Basõn ve

yayõn

Samardziev”Matbaas

õ işçileri

Selanik

27 1911 Mart sonu

Nisan başõ

Gõda Drama ve Kavala

Herzog Mağzalarõ

işçileri

Drama ve

Kavala

28 1911 Mart sonu

Nisan başõ

Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Selanik

29 1911 Mart sonu

Nisan başõ

Gõda Cibali Tütün rejisi

işçileri

İstanbul 2300

veya

3000

30 1911 Nisan Metal “ Augsburg”

fabrikasõ işçileri

İstanbul

31 1911 Mayõs Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri İskece 5000

32 1911 Haziran Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

Şark Demiryollarõ

Şirketi işçileri

İstanbul

(Sirkeci) Mustafapaşa

33

1911 22 Temmuz Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir-Kasaba ve

temdidi

Demiryolu Şirketi

İşçileri

İzmir

Kasaba

Afyonkarahi

sar

1500

34 1911 3 Eylül Gõda İstanbul un fabrikasõ

işçileri

İstanbul

71

Page 72: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

35 1911 Kasõm başõ Basõn ve

yayõn

Selanik matbaa

işçileri

Selanik

36 1911 Kasõm ortasõ Madencilik Zonguldak-Ereğli

Kömür

Madeni şirketi işçileri

Zonguldak 120

37 1912 9 Mayõs Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri Drama 2000

38 1912 Temmuz İnşaat Yol inşaatõnda

çalõşan

İşçiler

İznik

39 1912 Ağustos Gõda Tütün rejisi işçileri İstanbul

40 1913 6 Eylül Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Liman işçileri

vapurlara

Kömür yükleyen

işçiler

İzmir

41 1913 Eylül Demiryolu

taşõmacõlõğõ

İzmir-Aydõn

Demiryolu

Şirketi işçileri

İzmir

42 1913 Eylül Ardiye ve

antrepoculuk

Yemiş çarşõsõ

sandalcõlarõ

İzmir

43 1914 Şubat Madencilik Zonguldak- Ereğli

Kömür

Madeni şirketi işçileri

Zonguldak 10000

Sources: Güzel, “İşçi Hareketi ve Grevler,” p.818 / Kırpık, pp.265-267

Table 4: The Strikes between 1919 and 1922

72

Page 73: Labour Movements and unionist activities in Ottoman İstanbul and Anatolia-1870-1923

Source: Güzel, “Türkiye’de İşçi Hareketleri”, 1996, pp.111-112

73