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Journals / Sosyal Güvence / 2026 / Sayı: 30

Social Sustainability in The Circular Economy: A Comparative Analysis of Occupational Health and Safety Risks, Institutional Protection And Social Inequality

Döngüsel Ekonomide Sosyal Sürdürülebilirlik: İş Sağlığı ve Güvenliği Riskleri, Kurumsal Koruma Ve Toplumsal Eşitsizlik Üzerine Karşılaştırmalı Bir Analiz

Rabia Balcı

Pages
2303–2347
Publication Date
2026-07-04
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Abstract

This paper examines how circular economy practices reshape occupational health and safety risks, forms of institutional protection, and social inequalities. It adopts a qualitative, multiple-case and comparative design, drawing on 40 cases from recycling, e-waste processing, construction, logistics, and platform-based work. The analysis combines thematic coding with four indicators: the Composite OHS Risk Score, Algorithmic Management Score, Institutional Safeguard Deficit Score, and Social Inequality Intensity. The paper contributes to circular economy research by examining a transition process often discussed through environmental and economic outcomes, while also addressing worker health, algorithmic control, gaps in institutional protection, and inequality. The findings indicate that circular economy practices do not eliminate OHS risks. Rather, they reshape these risks in different ways across sectors and countries. Institutional protection deficits appear more clearly in India, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Brazil, while algorithmic management increases psychosocial risks in platform-based work. Women, children, migrants, and ethnic minorities also tend to work more often in insecure and high-risk jobs. It is concluded that circular economy policies can align with the aim of a just transition only when they place OHS, regulatory oversight, and equality-oriented protection instruments at the centre of the transition process.

Özet

Bu çalışma, döngüsel ekonomi uygulamalarının iş sağlığı ve güvenliği risklerini, kurumsal koruma biçimlerini ve toplumsal eşitsizlikleri nasıl dönüştürdüğünü incelemektedir. Araştırma, geri dönüşüm, e-atık işleme, inşaat, lojistik ve platform temelli çalışma alanlarından seçilen 40 vakaya dayalı nitel, çok vakalı ve karşılaştırmalı bir tasarıma sahiptir. Veriler tematik kodlama yoluyla çözümlenmiş, Kompozit İSG Risk Skoru, Algoritmik Yönetim Skoru, Kurumsal Önlem Eksikliği Skoru ve Toplumsal Eşitsizlik Yoğunluğu göstergeleriyle değerlendirilmiştir. Çalışma, döngüsel ekonomi literatüründe çoğunlukla çevresel ve ekonomik çıktılar üzerinden tartışılan dönüşüm sürecini çalışan sağlığı, algoritmik denetim, kurumsal koruma eksikliği ve eşitsizlik boyutlarıyla birlikte ele alarak literatüre katkı sunmaktadır. Bulgular, döngüsel ekonomi uygulamalarının İSG risklerini ortadan kaldırmadığını, bu riskleri sektörlere ve ülkelere göre farklı biçimlerde yeniden ürettiğini ortaya koymaktadır. Hindistan, Bangladeş, Nijerya ve Brezilya’da kurumsal koruma eksikliği daha belirgin hâle gelirken, platform temelli işlerde algoritmik yönetim psikososyal riskleri artırmaktadır. Kadınlar, çocuklar, göçmenler ve etnik azınlıklar ise güvencesiz ve yüksek riskli işlerde daha yoğun biçimde yer almaktadır. Sonuç olarak çalışma, döngüsel ekonomi politikalarının adil geçiş hedefiyle uyumlu olabilmesi için İSG, düzenleyici denetim ve eşitlik odaklı koruma araçlarının dönüşüm sürecine baştan itibaren dâhil edilmesi gerektiğini vurgulamaktadır.

Keywords
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Cite This Article

Balcı, R. (2026). Social Sustainability in The Circular Economy: A Comparative Analysis of Occupational Health and Safety Risks, Institutional Protection And Social Inequality. Sosyal Güvence, Sayı: 30, 2303–2347. https://doi.org/10.21441/sosyalguvence.1942260

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