In what has become nearly an annual ritual, the orderly start of the school year on September 2 is threatened by a strike. This year, the disruptions or delays may be due to a high school teachers' strike, a university students' boycott and an ultimatum by Sderot parents unwilling to endanger their children. On Monday night, the National Labor Court, the highest instance for labor disputes, has ordered high school teachers to appear for

The National Labor Court... ordered high school teachers to appear for work for the first week.

work for the first week.

The request for the injunction against the teachers strike was filed by the Finance Ministry, the Education Ministry and the Center for Municipal Government. While handing down its decision to ban a strike during the first week of school, the labor court sent the high school teachers union and the government back to the negotiating table. On Thursday, the court will convene again to rule if high school teachers may strike during the second week of school.

In a letter to teachers issued prior to the court decision, the union also called for teachers to prevent any field trips as part of ongoing work sanctions. The one exception would be the annual March of the Living trips to Nazi-era concentration camps in Europe.

The high school teachers union, headed by Ran Erez, is demanding a change in working conditions and an increase in salaries. The union held a month-long series of rotating strikes that rolled from school district to school district throughout the country towards the end of last school year. The rolling strike was eventually called off following partially successful negotiations between the union and the government.

According to the agreement reached at the time, the teachers' work week will be cut to 36 hours and the top salary will reach 15,300 shekels (about $3,900) a month. The changes are to be implemented over a six-year period. Commenting on the outcome of the strike in May, Erez said, "At last, the Ministries of Education and Finance accepted the basic justness of our demands, and even raised some financial offers. The argument is now over finances, not principles, and is now easier. We expect to make headway now...."

Minister of Education Yuli Tamir said that the agreement reached with the high school teachers union at the end of the last school year is "one hundred percent better than the situation [prior to the agreement]." Arguing against the strike originally planned for Sunday, Tamir said, "For years, you called strikes and never solved a single problem; there have finally been some negotiations and they brought about results."

University Students to Boycott Studies

University students are also planning to resume a boycott of classes initiated during the last school year. At the time, students refused to attend classes for three weeks in protest over government proposals to raise university tuition fees.

Vice Prime Minister Haim Ramon (Kadima) has been appointed by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to begin talks with the university students' union to forestall the boycott. The talks are to get underway in the next two weeks.

Parents Boycott Unprotected Schools

The majority of Sderot schools still lack adequate shielding.



The Sderot Parents Association has threatened to keep their children home from school until proper protection from rockets is installed in the city's educational facilities. Palestinian Authority terrorists in Gaza have fired thousands of rockets at Sderot, in the western Negev. In spite of government promises, the majority of Sderot schools still lack adequate shielding. Just last week, a PA rocket slammed into an empty schoolyard in the city.

Reacting to the Sderot parents' concern, Prime Minster Olmert said, "Don't deprive your children of this [learning] experience, with all the dangers you face." He made the comment while speaking at the Education City convention in Holon, south of Tel Aviv, on Monday.