The Emet L’Yaakov organization has filed a petition with the High Court of Justice against the Ministry of Labor and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, challenging a new directive that they claim discriminates against children of kollel families whose fathers have not settled their status with the IDF.
The petition calls for the cancellation of the directive, which prevents children of parents studying in Torah institutions—who have not received an exemption or served in the military, national, or civil service—from being eligible for daycare and family daycare placements.
According to the petition, for years children of kollel students were enrolled in daycare centers without the requirement of having an exemption from military or civilian service. The new policy, published after registration for the 5786 (2025-26) school year had already closed, stipulates that only children whose parents have served or received a service exemption are eligible.
The petitioners argue that the directive, issued by the Justice Ministry and implemented by the Labor Ministry, disproportionately harms children from Haredi families, particularly those of kollel students, by placing them at the bottom of the admissions list—even when the parents are the primary earners or enrolled in employment-preparatory studies alongside Torah learning.
They further claim that the policy is fundamentally flawed, driven by irrelevant considerations and lacking proportionality. The stated purpose of daycare centers is to enable parents to work and join the labor force—not to assess their military status. The petition asserts that the directive disregards the welfare of the child by giving undue weight to the parent’s standing with the IDF.
The petition also notes that many parents were given only two days to provide documentation regarding their military status—amid a national emergency and during a period when public services are severely limited. This, they argue, amounts to unjustified bureaucratic harassment.
The petitioners are asking the court to annul the directive, reinstate the previous policy, allow children of kollel students without settled military status to be admitted to daycare, and issue an interim order to delay the release of acceptance decisions until the case is resolved.