Erdogan Under Pressure as Covid Leaves Turks Losing Hope of Work

  • Restrictions have been reintroduced to curb spread of Covid-19
  • Support for ruling party down, according to two surveys

Closed stores during weekend curfew in the Eminonu district of Istanbul, on Dec. 5.

Photographer: Kerem Uzel/Bloomberg
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Turkey’s fight to protect jobs amid a spreading coronavirus outbreak is floundering, with signs that many of those without work are directing their anger at President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government.

Job retention programs, including a ban on dismissals, have kept a lid on official unemployment in the formal sector -- the rate edged down in August to October from the previous period to 12.7%, data released by the statistics office on Thursday show.