The situation of domestic workers in labor and social security law

Although domestic works are excluded from the scope of Labor Law No.4857, there is no definition of what domestic works are. Therefore the content of domestic works has been shaped by doctrinal views and judicial decisions for a long time. Domestic works have different definitions such as "daily work of the house such as housekeeping, cleaning, cooking, child care, gardening", "paid housework" and "providing the daily work of the house by people other than family members". With the additional article 9 of the Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law No. 5510, the insurance status of those working in household services is regulated according to their working hours. The communiqué showing the application area of the article of the law has brought the first definition to our law in terms of legal regulation. Domestic works are the daily work that can be done by family members living in the house such as cleaning, cooking, laundry, ironing, shopping, gardening, and care work of children, the elderly or those who need special care by people other than family members. Domestic workers protected with the Turkish Code of Obligations numbered 6098 about wages, leave, compensation, termination and also they are protected under the Social Insurance and General Health Insurance Law about social security. First of all, what the concept of domestic works is and what should be understood from the concept of home will be evaluated within the scope of our study. It will be explained whether the Labor Law or the Law of Obligations should be applied in disputes arising within the scope of domestic works. In the continuation of our study, the existence of a business relationship based on the employment contract between the parties and social security issues will be revealed in detail. Keywords: Domestic Work, Domestic Worker, Home, Wage, Compensation, Insurance