Israel Electric Corporation (IEC) has announced that any employee from the LGBTQIA+ community who begins the process of surrogacy will receive a 30,000 NIS ($8,733) grant.
The grant will be made from the budget of IEC's Employees Organization, which is funded by all of the company's employees.
On its Facebook page, IEC wrote: "We are also celebrating Family Day, with an unprecedented decision, and we really hope other companies will follow our lead. Gay and lesbian couples who are employees of Israel Electric Corporation and who begin the process of surrogacy will receive a 30,000 NIS grant from the Employees Organization."
Many social media users fumed at the announcement.
"With that money, why not lower the electricity rates a bit?" asked Avichai. Another user said: "This is what you do with the public's money, when you are billions in debt? There's no end to the chutzpa."
IEC has traditionally provided the grant to employees who undergo surrogacy due to infertility - a minuscule percentage of the population, which has almost always spent a small fortune in failed fertility treatments or suffered severe health issues.
However, the grant will now be expanded to include all those who identify is part of the LGBTQIA+ community and choose to undergo surrogacy as a lifestyle choice.
The "Choosing Family" movement responded: "The Choosing Family movement protests the grant offered by the Employees Organization of Israel Electric Corporation for the trafficking of women. The right of a child to grow up with his biological mother is much more important and significant than the purchase of the parenthood experience by those who chose not to bring a child into this world in the natural way and to raise him together with his mother."
"The Electric Corporation, together with organizations to break apart the family unit, are sending us back to dark periods of trafficking women and children. We must put an end to this shameful phenomenon."
Last year, Globes reported that members of the LGBT organization called hi-tech and other major companies to see if they would support a snap pro-LGBT strike. Those companies which did not express support were told that representatives "will make sure the media knows" that they did not fully support the strike, and even resorted to outright threats. The resulting pressure caused dozens of large Israeli companies to bow to the demands to pay employees to strike without prior notice that they planned to take part, as well as to allow their companies' names to be used to garner additional support.