As reported by "Globes," the threat of a strike by Egged Israel Transport Cooperative Society Ltd. has been postponed until after the holidays, Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel) chairman Avi Nissenkorn said in an interview. The signing of a subsidy agreement for Egged has been delayed by the Ministries of Finance and Transport and Road Safety since the end of last year.
Egged executives met on Sunday with Ministry of Finance deputy budget director Udi Adiri and Ministry of Transport and Road Safety VP for infrastructure and transportation planning Keren Terner to continue their negotiations over a subsidy agreement. At the end of the meeting, it was decided that Terner would formulate a compromise proposal to be discussed by the parties at the next meeting.
The dispute mainly concerns the amount of the subsidy for Egged and the streamlining measures to be taken by the company. In a nutshell, Egged is seeking extra financing for 18 years in excess of the subsidy given to the other public transportation companies in order to pay for the retirement of its members and the older generation of its workers. The Ministries of Finance and Transport are complaining that Egged has not streamlined over the past decade, despite having received money to do so. They assert that giving Egged more money will only ensure that Egged will also not cut its expenses in the coming years. According to Ministry of Finance sources, Egged is seeking more than NIS 500 million a year in extra subsidies.
The Public Transport Users Association in Israel said, "The media pressure we exerted made the Histadrut order the postponement of the Egged strike until at least after the holidays." The organization severely criticized Nissenkorn's behavior, who it says is blaming the state for the deteriorating conditions of the company's drivers, instead of "the failed financial policy of Egged management."
Public Transport Users Association in Israel CEO Itai Haim said, "Egged drivers and the workers committee are going on strike without any enthusiasm. They don't want to upset the applecart; all they want is recognition of the driver as a professional, which will bring about the necessary improvement in employment conditions in the entire sector."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 13, 2016
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