The Ministry of Finance, the Histadrut and the Histadrut of Civil Workers signed a special collective agreement on Thursday for administrative and facility employees in government-run hospitals, in Ministry of Health headquarters and municipal hospitals (Ichilov and Bnei Zion), providing salary increases of hundreds of shekels per employee.
The agreement will be valid until January 1 2025, and will apply to more than 15,000 workers. It includes a salary increase of 320-720 shekels per full-time worker, in two instalments, the first being paid immediately and the second in January 2023. In addition, a special increase for workers in psychiatric centers following changes in their working methods, and the elimination of lower ranks in some of the positions of administrative and farm workers in government hospitals.
The funding for the additions for 2022 will come from the budget agreed upon in the recent package deal of the Histadrut, the Ministry of Finance and the employers, which is intended to raise wages and improve conditions for weakened sectors in the public sector.
“I applaud this historic and important agreement, which gives workers a feeling of being seen,” Arnon Bar David, Histadrut chairman, said at the signing of the agreement. “It is a day of pride for all of us and very good tidings.”
The agreement-signing ceremony was broadcast live on social media for the first time, under the direction of the Histadrut chairman.
“This agreement is one of the most important agreements I have signed in the last three years in the role as chairman, because it concerns a group of workers who really deserve it,” Bar David continued. “A group of workers who, for the past two years, have been leading the fight against COVID-19, leading the hospitals, carrying the burden, working around the clock.”
The First Installment
According to the agreement, administrative and facility staff in government hospitals in the administrative classification, uniform classifications and CPR classification will receive a fixed supplement (retroactive from January 1, 2022) of 450 shekels per month.
Administrative workers of the technician and engineering classification will receive an extra 200 shekels per month as part of the first installment. Part-time workers will receive a supplement relative to the part-time job.
The agreement also stipulates that from January 2023, the amount of the supplement will be updated by 60% compared to the first installment. The cost of the supplement will be allocated as part of the next framework agreement to be signed between the state and the other employers and the Histadrut.
In addition, an additional wage increase was agreed for the workers of the administration and economy at the state-run psychiatric centers. The agreement was signed following the results of the recent mental health reform on workers. In addition, in light of the willingness of the workers to assist with answering the phone and in performing urgent tasks beyond normal working hours, it was determined that they would receive additional pay.
Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman: “On the day I took office as Minister of Finance, I set a clear goal of improving the conditions in the salaries of groups of workers in the State of Israel who are the most justified in their request for support, including administration and facility workers. The people working in administration and facilities is a group that is not often in the spotlight, but these are workers who work very hard and are rewarded with very low wages. We are fixing that today.
“Thanks to the agreement signed today between the Ministry of Finance and the Histadrut, we will be able to guarantee workers a respectable salary and, no less important, guarantee the public a significantly better service. Thank you, dear workers, for the past two years you have been fighting shoulder to shoulder with the medical staff in the fight against COVID-19. Our appreciation for you today is also expressed in actions and budgets, not just in words.”
Eli Badash, Chairman of the National Committee of Administrative and Economy Workers at Government Hospitals: “After many years of difficult struggle, during which we were unfortunately forced to go on a hard strike with only the wellbeing of workers, protection of rights and job security in mind, I am glad that we have succeeded with determination and great effort to correct an injustice to weakened workers – administrative and facility workers and auxiliary workers. I am proud of our success in achieving unparalleled gains in the healthcare system.”
Nissim Levy, Chairman of the National Committee of Ministry of Health and Health Bureau Employees: “I am happy to sign the agreement for employees of the Ministry of Health and Health Bureaus, together with the hospitals, which was promised to us in the 1980’s by Minister Eliezer Shostak who appointed the Pada Committee. We stand proudly as full partners along with health care and hospital workers. Today is a holiday for us.”
Chairman of the Histadrut of Civil Workers Ariel Yaakovi: “I am proud that we were able to correct an injustice caused to workers in the administration and economy, the auxiliary forces and the administration in the Ministry of Health and in the regional health bureaus.”
This article was translated from Hebrew by Greg Dorfman
