Sponsored briefing: Effects of Covid-19 pandemic on private sector employment and applicable methods

Sponsored briefing: Effects of Covid-19 pandemic on private sector employment and applicable methods

As we stated in our publication dated 16 March 2020, the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic indicates that it is one of the most important projections on the employment relations between employer and employee. Under current circumstances; many employers have been carrying on or will carry on remote working (homeworking) in regard to their white-collar employees either for all of them or alternately until a further notice is made. The current status of the pandemic and the applicable solution methods particularly in the scope of employment relations in terms of the uncertainty of the pandemic’s spreading speed and the precautions taken by the government are examined in this publication.

1. The Solution Methods That Could Be Applied in Terms of Continuation of Employment Relation

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Sponsored briefing: COVID-19 and its effects – Frequently asked question in context of labour law

Sponsored briefing: COVID-19 and its effects – Frequently asked question in context of labour law

Nowadays, witnessing the heavy effects of Covid-19 (Coronavirus), described as a ‘pandemic’ by the World Health Organization (WHO), on employee-employer relations, we share our evaluations regarding the issues put on the agenda by any employees and employers, here in this article in the form of frequently asked questions.

1. What sort of precautions can be taken in the workplace due to the pandemic?

Enterprises should determine the measures to be taken in the workplace and work areas, take decisions and implement them immediately such as providing and positioning disinfectants, following the hygiene rules and supplying masks through gathering the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) committees. Necessary precautions should to be taken in terms of hygiene and cleaning, by working with occupational safety specialists and workplace doctors. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: COVID-19 and its effects – Frequently asked question in context of labour law”

Sponsored briefing: Practical Information for Businesses in the Face of COVID-19

Sponsored briefing: Practical Information for Businesses in the Face of COVID-19

After the first novel coronavirus case in December, COVID-19 has gradually, yet rapidly, expanded and finally has managed to bring the entire world to a collective halt. Social restrictions and containment measures continue to increase to take the pandemic under control and to eliminate its fatal consequences, both on civilians and economies.

Under these circumstances, it has become obvious that the COVID-19 pandemic started to trigger substantial legal consequences predominantly on i) Contractual Obligations, ii) Employment and iii) Data Privacy. Accordingly, this article aims to provide an efficient guide on the repercussions of the novel coronavirus, from a practical perspective. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Practical Information for Businesses in the Face of COVID-19”

Sponsored briefing: Advisory Announcement of the Ministry of Trade on the Dividend Distribution of Companies during COVID-19 Outbreak

Sponsored briefing: Advisory Announcement of the Ministry of Trade on the Dividend Distribution of Companies during COVID-19 Outbreak

The letter that was sent to all chambers of commerce by the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB) on 1 April 2020, numbered 34221550-045.02-3392 referring to the letter of the Ministry of Trade (Ministry) dated 31 March 2020 (the Announcement) advises companies to preserve their equities during the COVID-19 pandemic. TOBB also made an advisory announcement regarding the need to limit the distribution of profits in order to prevent companies from falling into a state of capital loss and debt because of the outbreak. The Announcement recommends all companies, except state-owned enterprises, preserve their equities and in this regard, take the below principles into consideration for General Assembly meetings for the 2019 financial year that will be held this year.

How the Ministry recommends decisions to be taken on General Assembly meetings with regard to profit distribution?

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Sponsored briefing: Legal effects of Covid-19 on the business life

Sponsored briefing: Legal effects of Covid-19 on the business life

Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19 (Coronavirus), has negatively affected business life in a very short period due to the precautionary measures taken in order to prevent its rapid spread, such as the ban on travelling, halt of production, quarantine practices, and national emergency resolutions, since its very first appearance in Wuhan, China. This epidemic, which has become a global threat, has been declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be a ‘pandemic’ (geographic epidemic above regions and groups) as of 11 March 2020.

The emergency measures that have been taken regarding Coronavirus have massively affected ongoing business life on a daily basis. Considering the unexpected and fast-moving nature of the epidemic, force majeure clauses in contracts and force majeure approaches of states and judiciary authorities have become one of the focal points of business people, shareholders and other market players, especially in terms of possible delays or non-performance in commercial relations. On the other hand, issues such as disruptions in supply and distribution chains, closure of workplaces and harbours, disruptions at customs, labour shortage and a decrease in consumption are interpreted as the preview of a global crisis. While the effects of the epidemic and the severity of the measures have increased day by day, we deem it helpful to address the effects of this pandemic from a multifaceted legal perspective within this article. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Legal effects of Covid-19 on the business life”

Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic

Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic

The Coronavirus pandemic, also known as Covid-19 (Coronavirus), which has been declared a ‘pandemic’ by the World Health Organization (WHO) as of 11 March 2020 and spread rapidly in our country in a short time, prepares the ground for a global social and economic crisis that may arise in the next few months, in addition to having a global health crisis. For this reason, governments, institutions, organisations and companies have taken action to take all measures in all respects, primarily protecting the public and human health, and then economic measures. In line with the measures taken in relation to the pandemic, efforts are made to prevent the damage caused by quarantine practices, closure of workplaces, import and export restrictions, and a reduction in consumption, and to reduce the negative impact of current measures.

The historical decrease in the Baltic Dry Index which is one of the most important indicators of world trade indicates the contraction in world trade while the record decrease in Brent Oil prices points to a decrease in production and growth. The mentioned economic indicators show that the economic contraction caused by the Coronavirus pandemic has spread all over the world. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic”

Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic-II

Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic-II

In order to prevent the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic, also known as COVID-19 (Coronavirus), which has spread to the whole world, many precautions are being taken by governments, institutions and organisations. The precautions and measures taken in Turkey were examined in our previous article published on 23 March 2020 with the title ‘Precautions and Measures Taken against Covid-19 Pandemic’. As a continuation of our previous article, we hereby wish to mention the measures taken recently in light of the current developments.

I. MEASURES TAKEN BY LAW

‘The Law Amending Certain Laws numbered 7226’ (the Omnibus Bill) was published on the Official Gazette dated 26 March 2020 and numbered 31080. The measures taken to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 outbreak in our country have been enacted by the Omnibus Bill. In line with the measures taken in relation to the pandemic, regulations have been made on many issues such as the Ceasing of Proceedings, Conditions for Benefiting from the Short-Term Work Allowance, Compensation Time, and Lease Payments. You can reach the detailed content related to the Omnibus Bill from our article published on 27 March 2020 with the title ‘The Law Amending Certain Laws Numbered 7226 and Its Legal Reflections to Business Life’. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Precautions and measures taken against Covid-19 pandemic-II”

Sponsored briefing: Actions Taken by the Ministry of Health and the Turkish Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Institution in relation to COVID-19

Sponsored briefing: Actions Taken by the Ministry of Health and the Turkish Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Institution in relation to COVID-19

Dear Colleagues, Clients and Friends,

Coronavirus (COVID-19), which has been declared a ‘pandemic’ by the World Health Organisation first emerged in Wuhan, China on 31 December 2019, and rapidly became a major topic by spreading across the globe. The first case in Turkey was seen on 11 March 2020, following which the Ministry of Health (the Ministry) and the Turkish Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Institution (the Institution) have taken various actions and steps to prevent the spread of the virus, protect the public health and ensure the market order. Some of the significant actions taken to date are as follows:

Restrictions on promotional activities. According to the Institution’s announcement dated 19 March 2020, visits paid by product promotion representatives to all health institutions and organisations including pharmacies, doctors, dentists and pharmacists have been suspended until a further announcement. However, within this period, product promotion representatives can carry out promotional activities electronically (via e-mail or video conference).

Export licence requirement for medicinal products used against COVID-19. As per the ‘Communiqué Amending the Communiqué Regarding Products Subject to Export Prohibition and Pre-Authorization (Export:96/31)’ published in the Official Gazette numbered 31058 dated 4 March 2020, export of protective masks (masks with gas, dust and radioactive dust filter), jump suits (protective work-clothes), liquid-proof aprons (protective aprons used against chemicals), goggles (protective goggles) supplied to the market within the scope of the Regulation on Personal Protective Equipment; as well as medical and surgery masks, and medical sterilised/ non-sterilised gloves supplied to the market within the scope of the Regulation on Medical Devices became subject to the pre-authorisation of the Institution. Additionally, under the Amending Communiqué published in the Official Gazette numbered 31080 dated 26 March 2020, ventilators, oxygen concentrators, ventilation consumables, patient circuits, cannulas, intubation tubes and intensive care monitors have also been made subject to export pre-authorisation. Information and documents required for obtaining export authorisation from the Institution of the relevant products are indicated in the announcements of the Institution dated 5 March 2020 and 6 March 2020. On the other hand, no authorisation is required for products, export declarations of which have been registered with the relevant Ministry before 4 March 2020.

Temporary licence to produce disinfectants. Pursuant to the Circular numbered 2020/1 dated 19 March 2020, which regulates the procedures and principles regarding processes and operations related to biocidal products that are in direct contact with the human body, a temporary licence may be issued for a period of three months whereby pharmacies can be allowed to produce hand sanitisers using the formula determined by the Institution, for purposes of meeting the need for disinfectants due to the state of emergency caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Measures regarding clinical research. Measures to be applied to clinical research in connection with COVID-19 have been determined with the announcement dated 20 March 2020. Firstly, sponsors have been reminded of the need to regularly conduct risk assessments by observing priorities and urgencies due to COVID-19 and to carry out and update research organisations on this basis. In terms of such risk assessments; protection of the safety of volunteers, reducing the workload of research centres and ensuring compliance with social isolation rules are essential. Pursuant to the regulation: (i) clinical researches may be temporarily suspended or terminated early if deemed necessary considering the nature of the research; (ii) in cases giving rise to safety concerns, emergency safety measures can be implemented without being subject to the approval of the ethics committee and the Institution; (iii) in case of deviation/breach of the protocol due to COVID-19 measures, such deviation or breach will not be required to be notified to the ethics committee and the Institution; (iv) postponing or re-scheduling of monitoring of clinical research will be the initial preference, but in case continuing of such monitoring activity is necessary due to the nature of the research, then timing of the visits will be coordinated with the research centre; (v) if monitoring at the research centre is not possible due to circumstances such as quarantine or isolation, clinical research may be remotely monitored in accordance with the Law on Protection of Personal Data and confidentiality principles applicable to clinical research; (vi) products subject to clinical research may be stocked up more than usual in order to ensure the sufficient amount of stock due to any potential quarantine or customs restrictions; (vii) research meetings will only be held online within this period; and (viii) training and meetings regarding good clinical practices and clinical research to be held face to face will not be allowed.

Postponement of scientific organisations. Based on the Circular numbered 2020/3 published in the Official Gazette numbered 31074 dated 20 March 2020, all national and international scientific, cultural, artistic and similar meetings or organisations to be held at open or closed spaces have been postponed until the end of April 2020.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for any further information on this briefing.

Elvan Aziz
Partner
eaziz@paksoy.av.tr

Nihan Bacanak
Counsel
nbacanak@paksoy.av.tr

Can Yasin Aksoy
Associate
caksoy@paksoy.av.tr

This briefing is for information purposes; it is not legal advice. If you have questions, please call us. All rights are reserved.

Paksoy is an independent full-service law firm in Istanbul, Turkey focused on helping clients in a wide range of legal areas including cross-border investments, acquisitions, international business transactions, banking and finance, projects, infrastructure, investigations, compliance, disputes, litigation and arbitration.

Paksoy Orjin Maslak Eski Büyükdere Cad. No:27 K:11 Maslak 34485 İstanbul

www.paksoy.av.tr

Sponsored briefing: The Effects of Coronavirus (Covid-19) on Turkish Litigation Practice

Sponsored briefing: The Effects of Coronavirus (Covid-19) on Turkish Litigation Practice

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) has affected almost all individuals and businesses in Turkey with over 3,629 confirmed cases, as of 26 March 2020, in all of Turkey. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: The Effects of Coronavirus (Covid-19) on Turkish Litigation Practice”

Sponsored briefing: Turkey | Data protection during the COVID-19 pandemic

Sponsored briefing: Turkey | Data protection during the COVID-19 pandemic

Dear Clients, Colleagues and Friends,

Following the announcement of the COVID-19 pandemic by the World Health Organization, increasingly restrictive measures to curb the spread of the virus have been taken in Turkey, as in many other countries all over the world. These measures lead to additional personal data processing activities, and raise new challenges in terms of compliance with data protection law. Continue reading “Sponsored briefing: Turkey | Data protection during the COVID-19 pandemic”