MSc.Thesis Defense: Beyza Çokkeçeci

Mobility of the Labor Force, Wages and Ethnic Distribution in Ottoman Bank

Beyza Çokkeçeci
Data Science, MSc. Thesis Dissertation, 2025

Thesis Jury

Prof. Dr. Selim Balcısoy (Thesis Advisor), Assoc. Prof. Selcen Çakır,

Assoc. Prof. Onur Varol

Date & Time: 19th, June 2025 –  13.30PM

Place: FENS 2019

Keywords : ottoman bank, business history, labor economics, employee mobility, labor diversity

Abstract

This thesis investigates labor dynamics within the Imperial Ottoman Bank between 1900 and 1930, drawing on archival personnel records to explore ethnic hierarchies, wage disparities, and mobility patterns. By combining AI-assisted transcription of handwritten documents with statistical analysis, the study reveals how the Bank functioned as a microcosm of imperial labor segmentation. Despite data limitations, key findings highlight the use of mobility as a shock absorber, the persistence yet semi-rigidity of ethnic occupational hierarchies, and emerging signs of institutional meritocracy. These insights contribute to Ottoman economic and labor history, comparative empire studies, and the historiography of modern organizational labor structures.