Implementation of mediation in legal disputes arising from employment relationships

In recent years, alternative dispute resolution methods and mediation, in particular, have gained increasing importance in the resolution of the legal disputes both in Turkey and in the world. The States have been including in their legislation the legal regulations with regards to these methods that enable the disputes to be concluded in a shorter period of time and with less expenses compared to the judicial proceedings. Alternative dispute resolution methods have existed in a traditional manner since the civilizations in Egypt, Babel and Assyria, and they continue to exist within the realm of today's needs and conditions and the framework of the legislative regulations. Mediation, which has a long-standing background in the world, is new in the Turkish legal system. In our legal system, there are many practices similar to mediation. The first legislation with regards to the procedure and principles of mediation in general was introduced with the Law of Mediation in the Legal Disputes Numbered 6325. With the third article of the Law of Labour Courts Numbered 7036, which entered into force in 01.01.2018, mediation was accepted as the cause of action in certain employee-employer disputes. In this thesis consisting of three sections, literature survey and documentation review methods of research have been used; employment disputes and mediation are studied in general and mediation as a cause of action in the employment disputes, in particular; the problems arising out of the application of the mediation are analysed; and possible solutions are offered. In the first section of this study, the legal disputes arising out of the relationship between the employee and the employer are analysed under two separate sub-titles as the conflicts of rights and benefits within the frameworks of individual and collective labour law; and the resolution methods of such disputes are set out in a general framework. In the second section, a brief screening of the alternative dispute resolution methods is laid out; general overview of mediation and its history is provided and the mediation-like procedures in the Turkish legal system are analysed; basic principles of mediation and the rights and obligations of the mediator are set forth. In the third and final section, the legislation and the legal literature is analysed on the mediation as a cause of action in the employment disputes; and within the context this analysis, the problems arising out of the mediation application are evaluated with suggested solutions offered to these problems.