Is mobbing a crime in itself?
The principle of legality in criminal law
In criminal law, the principle that offenses and penalties must be prescribed by law applies. An employee’s statement that he or she has been subjected to systematic pressure is not sufficient for the events as a whole to be named directly as a “mobbing offense” and for a conviction to be entered. Each concrete act must be related to the material and mental elements of an offense regulated in the TCK. For this reason, in a psychological harassment process the acts are examined with their separate dates: which words were said to whom, which message was sent when, who had authority to access, and what harm or danger resulted?
A breach of employment law and criminal liability are assessed separately
Under Article 417 of the Turkish Code of Obligations (TBK), an employer’s breach of its duty of care, or the employee’s acquiring a right of termination for cause under the Labor Law, does not mean an automatic criminal conviction. Conversely, the fact that a particular act constitutes a criminal offense does not by itself show that systematic mobbing exists. For example, while a single serious threat may be an offense for the purposes of criminal law, the continuity and systematic nature required for mobbing may be argued separately.
Which acts may constitute an offense?
| Act and possible offense | Provision | Key legal question |
|---|---|---|
| Swearing at an employee or damaging his or her honor by attributing a specific act | TCK Article 125 (insult) | Context of the statement, the victim, publicity and the complaint/prepayment regime |
| Intimidation directed at an employee’s life, body or property | TCK Article 106 (threat) | Objective content of the words and their being directed at the addressee |
| Persistent calling, noise or conduct that disturbs peace | TCK Article 123 | Special purpose, persistence and the complaint condition |
| Stalking by attempting to make physical or digital contact | TCK Article 123/A | Serious unease/concern for safety, following and persistence |
| Unwanted words or acts of a sexual nature | TCK Article 105 | Sexual purpose, nature of the act, effect of the employment relationship |
| Unlawful interference with the sphere of private life | TCK Article 134 | Nature of the confidential sphere, consent and manner of the act |
| Unlawful giving, spreading or obtaining of personal data | TCK Article 136 | Personal nature of the data, unlawfulness and the perpetrator’s act |
| Physical assault or battery | TCK Article 86 and related provisions | Injury, intent, report and aggravated forms |
| Particularly severe and systematic ill-treatment | TCK Article 96 (torment, eziyet), depending on its conditions | Intensity, continuity, incompatibility with human dignity and special elements |
This table does not mean that all offenses are committed together in every mobbing incident. Whether the same material event constitutes more than one offense, the provisions on concurrence of offenses and the applicable punishment regime are assessed in the concrete case.
How is insult distinguished from harsh workplace criticism?
Elements of insult
Within the scope of TCK Article 125, there may be an attribution of a specific act or fact capable of offending a person’s honor, dignity and reputation, or swearing (sövme). A manager’s or employee’s performance criticism is not automatically insult if it remains within lawful limits. However, demeaning epithets directed at a person, humiliation and words amounting to serious abuse may give rise to criminal liability. Who made the statement, where and to whom it was communicated, the full words and the context of the event are important.
The prepayment regime for insult as of 2025–2026
This is an important point of current relevance: Law No. 7571 dated December 25, 2025 expanded the prepayment (önödeme) arrangement for the offense of insult within the scope of TCK Article 75. According to the current statement of the Ministry of Justice Department of Alternative Dispute Resolution (Alternatif Çözümler Daire Başkanlığı), insult under TCK Article 125 is within the scope of prepayment, with the exception of Article 125/3-a. As a result, repeating, as it stands, the earlier statements that “insult is subject to victim–offender mediation (uzlaştırma) in every case” is incorrect under current law.
Prepayment is a procedure under which, where the conditions set out in TCK Article 75 are met, payment of a specified amount within the time limit results in a public prosecution not being brought, or a prosecution already brought being discontinued. This procedure does not automatically extinguish the victim’s private-law claims for compensation. The definitive procedural outcome cannot be stated without taking into account the date of the offense in the concrete case, the transitional provisions of Laws No. 7531 and No. 7571 and the relevant annulment decisions of the Constitutional Court.
Complaint time limit and the date of the act
Whether insult is subject to complaint is assessed according to the status of the perpetrator and the victim, aggravated forms and special provisions. For offenses subject to complaint, the general time-limit regime of TCK Article 73 is important. However, it is not always safe simply to say “you have six months” without taking into account the separate arrangement introduced for the specific offense and the limitation periods. The date of learning, continuing acts and the special transitional regime must be examined.
How is a threat distinguished from a lawful warning in the workplace?
Communicating the consequences of work is not always an offense
A manager’s saying “if the performance criteria are not met, the statutory procedure will be applied” does not directly constitute the offense of threat, if it is an explanation of a genuine and lawful work process. By contrast, words such as “I will beat you,” “I will harm your family,” or words announcing that an unlawful harm will be inflicted, may be assessed as a threat under TCK Article 106. What matters is the whole context of the words, their intimidating nature and the fulfillment of the statutory elements.
Complete preservation of evidence
A threat may have been made by phone, by written message, face to face or in a crowded meeting. The account from which messages were sent, the full context of the conversation, the date, witnesses and any video recordings are important. Relaying words only through fragmentary screenshots may lead to the material facts being misunderstood. The source of the recordings and the manner in which they were placed in the file should be explained.
Stalking, disturbing peace and quiet, and limits within the employment relationship
TCK Article 123 and the purpose of merely disturbing peace
Persistently telephoning, making noise or engaging in similar unlawful conduct solely for the purpose of disturbing the victim’s peace and quiet may, under the relevant conditions, bring TCK Article 123 into play. Not every telephone call made because of work constitutes this offense. The perpetrator’s special purpose, the persistent nature of the conduct and its unlawfulness are examined separately.
TCK Article 123/A and stalking
If elements such as persistently following someone physically, or attempting to make contact by using means of communication, information systems or third persons, and causing serious unease in the victim or concern for the safety of the victim or relatives, are present, the offense of stalking may be discussed. The ordinary business communication of the workplace must be distinguished from persistent contacts pursued by the perpetrator for a private purpose and against the victim’s will. The aggravated forms of the offense and the conditions of complaint are assessed separately.
Sexual harassment, private life and personal data
Sexual harassment may be affected by the hierarchy of the employment relationship
The legal nature of unwanted words, messages, proposals or conduct of a sexual nature directed at an employee is determined according to the elements of the event. TCK Article 105 regulates the offense of sexual harassment. Commission of the act by taking advantage of the employment relationship or of a hierarchical position may produce special consequences. An employer’s failure to take measures after learning of the event may give rise to separate liability under TBK Article 417 and the Labor Law. If the act has turned into sexual assault of a very different nature or into another offense, the correct offense classification must be determined separately.
Secret recording and confidentiality of private life
Secretly recording employees’ changing, resting, health or private conversation areas, and unlawfully sharing images, may be assessed under TCK Article 134. The presence of a security camera at the workplace does not mean that the camera has unlimited authority to record in every situation and in every area. Notification, purpose limitation and privacy must be examined together.
Spreading personnel, health and communication records
The unauthorized spreading of a health report, salary information or other personal data among colleagues may bring TCK Article 136 or other relevant provisions into play. An administrative violation of the Personal Data Protection Law (KVKK) and the elements of a criminal offense are not the same. Unlawfulness, the type of data, the perpetrator’s act, authority and intent must be assessed separately.
Can an audio or video recording be evidence in a mobbing file?
The principle of lawfully obtained evidence
An employee may have made an audio or video recording to prove that he or she is in the right; however, a recording does not always become lawful merely because it was made for the purpose of obtaining evidence. Factors such as the communication and private life of the persons during the recording, consent, the conditions under which the recording was obtained and necessity are assessed. Since the case law of the Court of Cassation (Yargıtay) and the Constitutional Court (Anayasa Mahkemesi) may produce different results depending on the concrete case, a general recommendation that “secret recording is permitted” is not correct.
Integrity of the digital record and the examination procedure
The consistency of a screenshot with the original message, to whom the account belongs, the sequence of messages, date/time information, and the device and storage conditions are important. To prevent a judgment being based on deleted or altered records, preservation of the original data and, if necessary, a technical expert examination may be requested. Where digital records are obtained by investigating authorities, the application of the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CMK) is also important.
The risk of obtaining the employer’s data without permission
Cracking the password of staff e-mail, taking other employees’ private messages, or transferring confidential personnel files out of the company without permission may create a new civil and criminal dispute. Lawful methods of preservation and requests for evidence to be obtained from judicial authorities should be preferred.
How is a criminal investigation initiated, and which time limits matter?
Where to apply and making the account concrete
The victim, or his or her representative where the conditions are met, may apply to the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor (Cumhuriyet Başsavcılığı); a complaint may also be made to law enforcement through the procedures recognized by law. In the complaint, instead of the general conclusion “mobbing was committed against me,” the date, perpetrator, place, words or message, witness and evidence of each concrete act should be explained. Which offense is subject to complaint should be checked separately.
Start of the time limit for offenses subject to complaint
Under TCK Article 73, for offenses subject to complaint the six-month period running from learning of the act and the perpetrator is generally taken into account; however, special offense provisions, continuing acts and different time limits for some offenses may additionally apply. The long duration of the events in the workplace does not alter the first and last dates in the same way for every offense. It should not be assumed that the time limits for reinstatement, compensation or administrative applications automatically stop because a criminal investigation has begun.
Distinguishing prepayment, victim–offender mediation and withdrawal of complaint
Prepayment, victim–offender mediation (uzlaştırma) and withdrawal of complaint are different institutions. Not every offense is subject to the same procedure; the inclusion of an offense in prepayment does not mean that it is automatically subject to victim–offender mediation. If there are multiple acts, a separate assessment is made for each act and offense. The fact that a public prosecution is not brought, or is discontinued, because of prepayment does not, as a rule, extinguish the private-law claim for receivables and compensation.
The relationship between the criminal decision and the outcome in the labor court
The standard of proof in criminal proceedings differs from the conditions of proof and liability in a private-law action. A decision of non-prosecution (kovuşturmaya yer olmadığına dair karar) in a criminal investigation does not in every case mean that there was no violation of personality rights in the workplace. On the other hand, the effect on the civil proceedings of the findings on material facts made by the criminal court must be examined separately within the framework of TBK Article 74 and the relevant case law.
Liability of employers and public officials
The employer’s duty of care
Once an employer learns of the risks of systematic pressure, threats, insult and violence in the workplace, it is obliged to take appropriate and effective measures. An internal investigation, protection of witnesses, safe separation of the parties and impartial examination of the allegations are required. Protection of the employee’s personality rights may give rise to private-law liability; criminal liability is determined separately according to the perpetrator’s own act and, where applicable, the provisions on participation and omission.
Where a public official is the perpetrator or the victim
Because of a public official’s status, an act connected with the duty and special investigation procedures, Law No. 4483 or other relevant special permission regimes may come into play. The same permission system is not applied to every public official file; the connection of the offense with the duty and the statutory exceptions must be examined. An administrative application and a full remedy action (tam yargı davası) are legal routes separate from a criminal investigation.
Checklist for evidence and procedure
- Record the exact date, place and, if possible, the time of each act thought to constitute an offense.
- Separate the person who uttered the words or sent the message or carried out the act from the witnesses who directly saw the event.
- Preserve lawfully the whole of the work correspondence and the preceding/following messages relating to the subject.
- If there are health reports, keep them with care for the protection of private life; do not spread unnecessary personal data.
- Determine whether the offenses are subject to complaint and the legal regulation in force on the date of the event.
- Check the 2025/2026 prepayment regime for insult and the relevant transitional provisions.
- Evaluate the time limits for reinstatement, severance pay and criminal complaint on separate calendars.
- Do not assume that the outcome of a criminal investigation will automatically produce the same outcome in a private-law dispute.
Conclusion
At the center of a criminal law review in psychological harassment files is not the “mobbing” label but whether concrete words and conduct satisfy the elements of the relevant offense. A violation of the employee’s personality rights and criminal liability depend on different conditions; in some situations both may be present together, and in others only one. In particular, the prepayment regime for the offense of insult, which changed at the end of 2025, the lawfulness of digital evidence and the complaint time limits make it necessary to build the application strategy offense by offense and date by date.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is mobbing an independent offense under the Turkish Penal Code?
No. However, certain conduct in a mobbing process may constitute the elements of other offenses.
Does a manager incur criminal liability if he or she insults an employee?
It may, if the words carry the elements of the offense of insult and the other statutory conditions are met; not every harsh criticism is insult.
In 2026, is the offense of insult subject to victim–offender mediation or to prepayment?
Under TCK Article 75, as amended by Law No. 7571, a large part of insult has been brought within the scope of prepayment, subject to the exception in TCK 125/3-a. The date of the offense and the transitional provisions must be examined separately.
What conduct counts as a threat in the workplace?
Words or acts that communicate an unlawful harm and carry the elements of TCK Article 106 may be a threat. Explaining lawful work discipline is not automatically a threat.
Is an employer’s constant sending of messages the offense of stalking?
Not in every case. Persistence, contact, serious unease or concern for safety and the other elements in TCK Article 123/A are required together.
Is a secret audio recording considered evidence?
It differs according to the concrete conditions under which it was obtained. The mere purpose of collecting evidence does not automatically make every recording lawful.
Does a complaint to TİHEK start a criminal case?
No. TİHEK is an administrative review body; a criminal investigation is conducted by the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor in accordance with the relevant rules of criminal procedure.
If I bring a criminal case, can I also sue in the labor court?
If the conditions are met, separate private-law claims are possible. The time limits and procedures of the criminal and employment law routes differ from each other.
Does the right to non-pecuniary damages end when prepayment is made for insult?
As a rule, prepayment does not extinguish the victim’s private-law claims for compensation; separate conditions are assessed.
When does the complaint time limit start?
For offenses subject to complaint, the general regime of TCK Article 73 is important; however, the type of offense, the date of the event, learning of the perpetrator and special provisions must be assessed separately.
Sources and legal bases
- Law No. 5237, Turkish Penal Code, Ministry of Justice UYAP legislation — Articles 73, 75, 86, 96, 105, 106, 123, 123/A, 125, 134, 136.
- Ministry of Justice Department of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Prepayment General Information — scope of prepayment for insult after Law No. 7571.
- Law No. 5271, Code of Criminal Procedure — procedures for investigation and obtaining evidence.
- Law No. 6098, Turkish Code of Obligations, Articles 417 and 74 — the employer’s duty of care and the relationship between criminal and civil law.
- Law No. 7036 on Labor Courts — route of application in civil disputes.
- Court of Cassation UYAP decision, April 14, 2026, transitional regime for prepayment for insult — concrete examination of the Law No. 7531/7571 amendments, the Constitutional Court annulment decision and their relationship to the date of the offense.