Dramın Ardındaki Emek: Dizi Sektöründe Reyting Sistemi, Çalışma Koşulları ve Sendikalaşma Faaliyetleri

Abstract

Labor Behind the Drama: Rating System, Working Conditions and Unionization in Turkish Soap Opera Industry Through the concept and the experience of precarity, this article investigates the impact of rating system on the working conditions within Turkey's soap opera industry. Drawing on the findings from a fieldwork involving 26 participants, the article argues that precarity in this sector differs from that defined within contemporary studies on precarious media labor. Rather than a purely economic phenomenon, it is crucial to grasp soap opera precarity with its bodily, physical and legal dimensions. Additionally, the article suggests that workers in this sector are neither victims of their passion for the job, which leads to self-exploitation, nor do they fall prey to precarity. On the contrary, they resist precarious labor conditions. Campaigns targeting precarity and adverse working conditions in the industry are examined in this study. Ultimately, it is observed that organization attempts in this sector unfold differently than horizontal organizations resisting precarity. Unionization within this sector aims to convince the state to recognize performers, actors, provide professional definitions, and prevent workplace accidents, which at times do lead to deaths. keywords: soap opera, labor, unionization, rating system, precarity 80 İleti-ş-im 24 • Haziran 2016