Strict restrictions remain in Turkey on the employment of migrant workers, according to an independent review.

The Council of Europe revealed that the Eurasian country is in breach of the European Social Charter, which it ratified in 1989, because of its restrictive allocation of work and residence permits to non-nationals.

The human rights watchdog disclosed that certain categories of employment are still limited to Turkish nationals throughout the country and that efforts to improve equal opportunities in the workplace have not gone far enough, Today's Zaman reported.

The report also disclosed that measures taken in health and safety have also proved inadequate in the past decade.

The European Social Charter rules that the only jobs from which foreigners may be barred in member states are those connected with the protection of law and order of national security.

Earlier this week, Guler Sabanci, chairwoman of Sabanci Holding - one of Turkey's largest companies, predicted that the country's economy will improve in 2010, but that the unemployment problem will take longer to address, Today's Zaman reported.