Academics protest dismissal at Istanbul Aydın University: 'We want our jobs back'

Academics at Istanbul Aydın University staged a protest, demanding their jobs back after being dismissed without explanation on June 30. They reported that their requests to meet with the rectorate were blocked by security and police. The academics stated they were not consulted and received no concrete reasons for their termination via the Electronic Document Management System (EBYS).

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We were dismissed without cause.

In a press statement, the academics highlighted years of deteriorating working conditions. They pointed to increased course loads, unpaid overtime, salary cuts, and practices that suppress academic output as becoming unsustainable. The mass dismissals were described as the latest step in this process. The university, which serves approximately 50,000 students, faces scrutiny over the dismissal of numerous academics while educational activities continue.

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No meeting was held with us beforehand. Our opinions were not taken, and the concrete reasons for the decision were not explained to us.

The dismissals are also affecting students, with many postgraduate students unsure about their thesis advisors and new semester course plans facing uncertainty. The academics emphasized that this situation directly impacts their right to work, students' right to education, and the university's academic functioning. They called for universities to be managed based on scientific freedom, merit, and public benefit, not corporate logic, and reiterated their demand to be reinstated.

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The working conditions have become unsustainable.

Selahattin Kural, speaking for the "Patronların Ensesindeyiz Ağı" (We Are on the Employers' Backs Network), stated that the events at Istanbul Aydın University are not isolated. He argued that similar dismissals have occurred at many foundation universities, attributing them to the marketization of education. Kural noted that this trend is not unique to Istanbul Aydın University.

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This situation directly affects not only our right to work but also our students' right to education and the university's academic functioning.