Turkish labor leaders criticize state COVID-19 response as cases surge
Turkish officials introduced tighter curfew measures to curb a national surge in COVID-19 rates, drawing criticism from labor rights leaders over exemptions for production workers.
ISTANBUL — In response to record high COVID-19 rates in recent weeks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan introduced tighter national curfews among other measures Monday.
Effective Tuesday, the new restrictions ban citizens from leaving their homes between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. on weekdays and full curfews will be enforced on weekends. The measures come after partial curfews imposed last month failed to slow contagion rates, and extend curfew exemptions for workers in the agriculture, forestry, health care, logistics and production sectors.