Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Saturday evening that the government had appealed to the Labor Court for an injunction against the strike announced by Teachers Union Secretary General Yaffa Ben-David.
According to Smotrich, the strike is “sudden, unnecessary, harmful and irresponsible.” He also said the government hopes to report as soon as possible that an order has been issued ensuring school will be held Sunday as usual.
Earlier this week, the Teachers Union announced that school will begin Sunday at 11:00 a.m. in preschools, kindergartens, elementary and middle schools across Israel. A Teachers Union source explained, “We have no intention of keeping quiet – the disruptions will continue and intensify.”
The Teachers Union is a protest against the Finance Ministry's decision to cut the salaries of public sector workers by 3.3% of the monthly salary but since the cuts have been included in the budget law, it is impossible to act to cancel them, and therefore the Teachers Union is demanding compensation for teaching staff.
The Teachers Union claims that the the cuts will cost beginning teachers 300 NIS a mont, and veteran teachers 800 NIS per month.
On Friday, Smotrich wrote a letter to teachers and preschool teachers, urging them to refrain from taking steps planned: “I cannot imagine that as hundreds of thousands of reservists leave everything – home, family, work, and livelihood – and give their lives to defend the homeland, it is precisely those who educate our children who will go on strike and harm the war effort because of an argument about how to temporarily reduce a few percent of wages in order to finance the war.”
“The reduction applies equally to doctors, nurses, career soldiers, ISA agents, the Mossad and the Israel Police, municipal and local councils and government and security companies, social workers, and more,” he added.
“Paralyzing the education system in the midst of a war and severely harming parents, students, reservists, and their wives is a wrong, irresponsible and un-educational step, and I urge you to avoid it at all costs.”
Smotrich added: “I urge you to refrain from harming the education system in the midst of a war. I call on you to show national responsibility, leadership and personal example, and not to harm parents and students in an unnecessary, irresponsible and harmful strike, and especially in an unjustified strike based on untruth.”
Education Minister Yoav Kisch responded to Smotrich's letter, writing: “The letter only shows his complete detachment from the crisis in the education system. This is not a law that was accepted by the Teachers Union itself. This is discrimination in an agreement that will reward all civil servants except teachers and preschool teachers. I will not lend my hand to it.”
“Finance Minister Smotrich, instead of sending letters in preparation for empty public relations, I expect you to start real negotiations and make sure that the teaching staff is compensated as you did for all the workers of the Histadrut labor union.”