Labor Shortages in Türkiye’s Key Sectors: The Current Landscape in 2024–2025
Türkiye’s economy continues to expand significantly in 2025. According to statements by Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, the country’s per capita income has reached 17,748 USD, allowing Türkiye to enter the World Bank’s classification of high-income countries for the first time. The national income now exceeds 1.5 trillion USD, positioning Türkiye as the world’s 16th largest economy, up from 17th in 2024.
However, behind this growth lies a major challenge: mismatches in the labor market. According to data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), Türkiye’s unemployment rate stood at 8.6% in September 2025, while labor force participation was 53.8%. These figures reveal persistent structural problems despite overall economic improvement.
Labor Shortages in Critical Sectors
Manufacturing and the Skilled Worker Gap
Despite being the sector with the highest employment increase during the first eleven months of 2025, Türkiye’s manufacturing industry continues to struggle with a shortage of mid-level technical staff. In labor-intensive industries such as textiles, apparel, leather, and furniture, workforce shortages are constraining growth and productivity.
In response, the government has launched the “Employment Protection Support Program.” This initiative provides small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with monthly support of 2,500 TL per employee in 2025. Plans are underway to increase this figure to 3,500 TL in 2026 and expand the program’s scope to include additional industries.
The Global Energy Workforce Challenge
Beyond Türkiye’s domestic challenges, the global energy industry faces a significant deficit of skilled professionals. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), global energy employment has grown by 5 million since 2019, reaching 76 million workers in 2024. Yet, the growth rate has slowed, with only a 1.3% employment increase recorded in 2025.
Technical roles such as electricians, pipeline installers, line workers, plant operators, and nuclear engineers are in particularly short supply. Between 2019 and 2024, around 2.5 million new positions were created in these professions, now comprising more than half of the global energy workforce. In 2024 alone, 800,000 additional jobs were generated in electric vehicle and battery production.
The IEA estimates that preventing the expansion of this skills gap by 2030 will require a 40% global increase in qualified energy professionals — achievable with an additional investment of just 2.6 billion USD in training programs worldwide.
Underlying Economic Factors
Structural Transformation and Rapid Growth
The major drivers of Türkiye’s labor shortages include:
– rapid economic growth that has surged demand for workers in manufacturing and renewable energy
– insufficient technical education creating a mismatch between labor supply and emerging jobs
– rising quality expectations in labor-intensive industries such as textiles and apparel, driven by competition with lower-wage countries
– demographic changes such as a shrinking youth population and aging workforce limiting the talent pool
Increased Investment and Employment Pressure
Vice President Yılmaz has announced that total investment incentive allocations will rise from 31.7 billion TL in 2025 to 50 billion TL in 2026 — a 58% increase. While this upswing will fuel production and export growth, unresolved skill shortages could restrain productivity and delay project implementation.
What This Means for Investors
Rising Labor Costs
Entrepreneurs considering production facilities in Türkiye should factor in the upward pressure on labor costs. The shortage of skilled workers is pushing wages up and may affect operational efficiency in sectors reliant on technical talent.
Choosing the Right Sector
Businesses operating in labor-intensive industries (such as textiles, apparel, and furniture) may experience cost increases due to limited labor availability. On the other hand, technology-driven and high-value manufacturing sectors benefit from Türkiye’s supportive industrial policies, which include tax incentives and investment subsidies.
Long-Term Opportunities in Energy
Türkiye is a regional leader in renewable energy investment, making this field especially promising for entrepreneurs offering workforce development or technical training services. The country’s strong position in solar power and its expanding electric vehicle and battery production industries signal sustained demand for skilled professionals.
Expanded Government Support
With planned increases in investment support funds and the expansion of employment protection schemes, Türkiye’s pro-business policies enhance investment appeal. Incentives include long-term employer and employee social premium contributions — 14 and 12 years respectively — for jobs created through new investment projects.
Potential in Education and Skills Development
The growing need for a qualified workforce is creating opportunities in vocational training, education technology, and upskilling services. Companies providing training and workforce development solutions can find promising markets in Türkiye and across the broader region, as both the private sector and the government increasingly prioritize human capital development.
