Israeli public workers stage strike for workers without benefits

2011-11-08 07:57:19 GMT+7 (ICT)

TEL AVIV (BNO NEWS) -- A general strike by Israeli public workers, which shut down major sectors of the economy on Monday, ended after just four hours following a last-minute court order, local media reported.

After five hours, the Labor Court finished its deliberations in the early morning hours and issued a temporary order to limit the duration of the strike. The strike took place from 6:00 a.m. to 10 a.m. local time after Labor Court President Nili Arad decided to limit it to only four hours, the Haaretz newspaper reported.

The strike affected trains, buses, universities, government ministries and municipalities. Many Israeli citizens opted to take other modes of transportation rather than trains and buses, causing massive traffic jams.

The strike also paralyzed Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv, the second most populous city in Israel. But El Al, the country's flag carrier, had previously decided to reschedule many of its international flights on Monday to Sunday night, allowing passengers to fly out of Israel before the strike began.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the organization of trade unions, Histadrut, to cancel the planned strike. However, the organization decided to continue with its plans after talks between Ofer Eini, head of the Histadrut Labor Federation, and Finance Minister Steinitz ended without a breakthrough.

The Histadrut, the umbrella organization for hundreds of thousands of public sector workers, wants the government to hire some 250,000 contract workers who have working conditions which are inferior to those of civil workers who are directly on government payrolls.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2011-11-08

Of course contract workers should be at parity with Unions in terms of wages and benefits. Good for the Israeli Public sector Workers. It is good to see a union flex its muscles once in awhile. I hope they gain concessions from the Government.