Automotive sector increasingly faces skilled labor shortage
ISTANBUL

The Turkish automotive sector’s shortage of skilled workers and technicians has grown to a level that is impacting a wide range of services in the industry.
The local auto industry is a huge sector, producing around 1.5 million vehicles, with 1.2 million vehicles sold per year, which requires a large number of skilled workers for body repair shops and after-sale services.
The lack of body shop workers especially causes problems, leading to long waits for customers.
“The average salary of a body shop worker is around 45,000 Turkish Liras. Companies, however, cannot find people to hire even if they offer up to 60,000 liras,” said Ünal Ünaldı, president of RS Otomotive Grup.
Young people want to work in jobs, such as barista, where they can socialize, he explained.
Working conditions are tough, training takes time and salaries are not satisfying, Ünaldı said, adding that due to the combination of those factors the industry is losing employees.
After the early-retirement scheme (EYT) was introduced, many skilled technicians quit their job, which aggravated the labor shortage problems, he noted.
“We provide training to 60 prospective workers per year, but 120 people retire. Which means we will face even bigger problems in the next five years,” Ünaldı said.
The labor shortage also pushes up costs, according to Ünaldı.
“There was stiff competition in the sector in the past. Not anymore. For example, a customer used to have a bumper painted for 1,000 liras, now it costs at least 5,000 liras,” he said.