Lay-offs of 750 workers from the Bagir textiles factory in Kiryat Gat have been put on hold. Before the decision was announced, Rachamim Ben-Hamu, head of the plant\'s workers\' union, told Arutz-7 that the firing of such a large number of workers would be a critical blow to the factory, which employs only 1,080 workers altogether. He met with local political and industrial leaders this morning in an attempt to find a solution, and in fact the implementation of the lay-offs was delayed for ten days while a more permanent solution is sought. Ben-Hamu said that he has no claims against the management, \"which tried to find new markets and did whatever it could. I blame the government for allowing the import of cheap clothes from China and the like...\" Kiryat Gat officials warn that if the Bagir textile plant shuts down, unemployment in the municipality would climb to an intolerable 18-20%.



Hundreds of farmers held a stormy demonstration outside the Prime Minister\'s Office today. Three policemen and five demonstrators were injured. The agriculturalists are against the Labor Ministry decision to restrict the entry of Thai workers - workers that the farmers say they need for their sustenance.