Peer Review Policy

The Employee Relations Law Journal (ERLJ) is committed to maintaining the highest standards of scholarly publishing through a rigorous, fair, and transparent peer review process. All submitted manuscripts are evaluated solely on their academic merit, originality, scientific quality, and relevance to the journal's scope.

Single-Blind Peer Review

ERLJ follows a Single-Blind Peer Review model. In this process, the identities of the authors are known to the reviewers, while the identities of the reviewers remain confidential throughout the review process. This approach ensures an objective and independent evaluation while protecting reviewer confidentiality.

Initial Editorial Assessment

Upon submission, each manuscript undergoes an initial screening by the Editorial Office to determine whether it:

  • Falls within the journal's aims and scope.

  • Meets the journal's formatting and submission requirements.

  • Demonstrates sufficient originality and scientific quality.

  • Complies with publication ethics.

  • Successfully passes plagiarism screening.

Manuscripts that do not meet these basic requirements may be returned to the authors for correction or rejected without external peer review.

External Peer Review

Manuscripts that successfully pass the initial editorial assessment are assigned to at least two independent expert reviewers with relevant subject expertise. Reviewers evaluate the manuscript based on:

  • Originality and novelty

  • Importance of the research

  • Methodological quality

  • Legal and scientific accuracy

  • Data interpretation

  • Clarity of presentation

  • Ethical compliance

  • Quality of references

  • Overall contribution to the field

Editorial Decision

After receiving reviewers' reports, the Editor-in-Chief or Handling Editor makes one of the following decisions:

  • Accept

  • Accept with Minor Revisions

  • Major Revisions Required

  • Reject

The Editor may request additional reviews if necessary. The final decision regarding publication rests solely with the Editor-in-Chief.

Revision Process

Authors receiving revision requests should submit:

  • A revised manuscript.

  • A detailed point-by-point response to each reviewer comment.

  • Clear explanations of all changes made in the revised version.

Revised manuscripts may be returned to the original reviewers for further evaluation when appropriate.

Reviewer Confidentiality

Reviewer identities remain strictly confidential. Review reports are treated as confidential documents and are used exclusively for editorial decision-making.

Conflict of Interest

Editors and reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest that could influence the review process. Individuals with conflicts of interest will not participate in the editorial evaluation of the manuscript.

Ethical Standards

The peer review process follows internationally recognized principles of fairness, impartiality, confidentiality, and research integrity. Any suspected cases of plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabricated data, image manipulation, citation manipulation, or other forms of research misconduct will be investigated according to the journal's ethical policies and may result in rejection or retraction.

Review Timeline

The journal strives to complete the peer review process as efficiently as possible. While review times may vary depending on reviewer availability and manuscript complexity, authors are kept informed of the progress of their submissions throughout the editorial process.

The Employee Relations Law Journal (ERLJ) is dedicated to ensuring that every published article meets the highest standards of academic quality, legal scholarship, and publication ethics through a transparent and rigorous peer review system.