In Denizli, which is a city that has leapt forward considerably in the Turkish Textile Industry in recent years, a shortage of technical and intermediate staff trained in the field of textile is in question.
The textile industry of Denizli, where 44 thousand people are employed, is experiencing a shortage of technical and intermediate staff trained in the field of textile. Striving at solving this problem, Müjdat Keçeci, Chairman of Denizli Chamber of Industry said that: ''Courses which guarantee employment are offered but there is not enough participation. Students do not select the textile department. We lack trained staff for textile industry. We must solve this problem.”
Textile Sector Isn't Favourite
Müjdat Keçeci, Chairman of Denizli Chamber of Industry also expressed that they offer courses which guarantee employment in the textile industry within the scope of the Specialized Vocational Training Centres Project but there is not enough interest for these courses and the students don't select the textile department in vocational high schools. Stating that the situation is deplorable, Keçeci said that: ''The textile industry is going through great difficulties, especially about technical staff. We have been trying to find a solution for this problem for a long time. We come together with families, schools and students and recommend our children to prefer the textile department but they don't prefer textile industry. For example, there are 1.500 students in Ataturk Industrial Vocational High School but only 70 students have chosen the textile department and the majority of them are reluctant to work in this field. This is a problem of not only the textile sector but also the industry of Denizli. We cannot train technical staff for the textile sector of Denizli despite all the efforts of the state, civil society and educational institutions.”
We Will Bring Foreign Staff
Isa Dal, the Chairperson of Denizli Textile and Clothing Industrialists’ Association (DETGIS), stated that the necessary steps should be taken for the training of intermediate staff, otherwise, the firms will soon start to look for workers from foreign countries.
Dal added that the sector is generally known with some firms going through difficult times rather than its growth, achievements in the overseas countries, employment rates and export figures and thus, the intermediate staff head towards other sectors.
Stating that the textile sector had its golden period in the second half of 2013 and he believes that this success will continue in 2014, Dal continued his speech as follows:
“In previous years, collapse of some companies caused a lack of confidence for textile industry. A widespread negative belief has been created about the future of the industry. Therefore, families have directed their children to different professions. Qualified personnel trained in the textile field went to different sectors. Despite the fluctuations, the textile sector is the most important sector of our country with the added value created and the employment rate. The problem of intermediate staff should be urgently solved.”
Dal said that: “We can bring staff from such countries and Pakistan, India and Bangladesh on annual contracts. The government should conduct works in this respect.”
In Denizli, the problem of intermediate staff is in question in many sectors including the marble and textile sectors, in particular. Reporting that there are 27 thousand unemployed individuals throughout the province and the sector needs 18 thousand employees, Dal argued that the staff problem is worsening increasingly, has started to pose a big challenge and can affect export and production in a negative manner.
A Labour Intensive Sector
Dal expressed that: “In a country where the unemployment rate is around 9 %, the staff shortage in the labour intensive sectors is alarming. Even though the firms invest in technology and automation, the employee demand is beyond the supply. Our people consider the labour intensive textile sector challenging and head towards the service sector. In Denizli, some sectors - the marble, textile and ready wear sectors, in particular – is experiencing an alarming staff shortage. It is thought-provoking that our country which has a relatively high unemployment rate faces staff shortage. This situation is valid in many parts of Turkey. It seems inevitable that this problem will deepen in the ensuing years.” Making a different suggestion for the solution of the problem, Dal said that: “To solve this problem, staff transfers on annual contracts should be implemented as in the developed Middle East countries. The workers of such countries as Pakistan, India and Bangladesh that are qualified in this area can meet the staff deficiency of labour intensive sectors of Turkey. The government should take the necessary steps in this regard.”
