Abstract:

The Tanzimat period was a period in which many important developments were experienced in the Ottoman Empire. With the Tanzimat period, the Ottoman Empire accepted that it lagged behind Europe in many areas. The Ottomans had to accept the superiority of the West due to the defeats in the wars, the economic difficulties experienced, and the difficulties caused by the non-industrialization. For these reasons, an innovative atmosphere prevailed throughout the Ottoman Empire during the Tanzimat period. In this way, it was aimed to revive the Empire again. Working life has also been affected by these innovative movements that started in almost every field. Because, in the legal regulations made in the Tanzimat period, issues related to working life were also addressed. In this respect, Mecelle is of great importance. Although it has the characteristics of a civil law Mecelle, employee-employer relations are also discussed in Mecelle. For this reason, Mecelle has a very important place in terms of labor law. For the first time in the Ottoman Empire, regulations regarding employee-employer relations were introduced in a general law. In this study, a research has been conducted in order to look at the employee-employer relations in the Ottoman Empire and to determine the position of the worker from Mecelle's perspective.

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