Navigating justice

Syrian migrant workers’ battle with the informal laws and economy in Turkey

Bibliographic Data

ID24232384
AuthorsLatif Tas
Year2026
Publication date2026-10-09
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueOñati Socio-legal Series (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2079-5971 • E-ISSN: 2079-5971
PublisherOnati International Institute for the Sociology of Law (PUBLISHER • ES)
DOI10.35295/osls.iisl.2831
OpenAlexW7221132612
References cited61

More than two billion people worldwide work in the informal economy without regulation or legal protection. Many of them work in the service sector, the textile and construction industries, and as domestic help. Migrant workers operating in these contexts, particularly those with precarious legal status, often face significant barriers to accessing formal justice mechanisms. As a result, informal dispute resolution frequently becomes the primary means of addressing grievances such as underpayment, exploitation and gender-based violence. This article addresses this gap by examining informal justice practices among Syrian migrant workers in Istanbul. Drawing on qualitative case studies, the article shows that exclusion from formal legal and economic systems not only pushes migrants into informal labour markets but also compels them to rely on community-based and often non-state forms of justice. The findings highlight the complex relationship between informality, alienation and justice.

Access to Justice · Alienation · community justice · domestic workers · gender-based violence · informal dispute resolution · informal economy · informal justice · informality · Istanbul · labor exploitation · Migrant workers · non-state justice · precarious legal status · underpayment · Labor Law and Work Dynamics · Law, Economics, and Judicial Systems · Migration and Labor Dynamics

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