Israeli labor union threatens general strike

The chairman of the powerful Israeli Histadrut labor union said on Saturday night that he intends to declare a general strike on Tuesday in protest of the low minimum wage and the continued widespread use of temporary workers for cleaning and security services.

Chairman Avi Nissenkorn listed his grievances in a statement as “the disgrace of the minimum wage in Israel, the worrying spread of the phenomenon of contracted workers, and the contempt by the state in not implementing an order regarding the expansion of employing disabled people in the civil service.”

Following the planned declaration, there would be a two-week grace period before Nissenkorn could put the strike into action. Yossi Wasserman, chairman of the teachers union, said he supports the decision and that should the strike go ahead, his union would join the action, shutting down educational institutes.

Other sectors that could be affected include garbage collection in local authorities, freight handling at docks and airports, and public reception services at government offices.

“All efforts to talk to the government have failed,” Nissenkorn said. “I suggest the government ministers try and live on $1,126 for just one month.”

The last time the Histadrut called a general strike was in 2012 in a bid to force limits on the use of contract workers for general services.