The Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel) has declared a labor dispute in the facility where SodaStream International Ltd. (Nasdaq: SODA) does most of its manufacturing in the Idan Hanegev industrial park in southern Israel. The Histadrut says that 500 of the company's employees have signed its membership forms in recent weeks, after the Histadrut formed a committee to represent the workers.
The Beer Sheva District Labor Tribunal last week heard an urgent petition by the Histadrut after one member of the workers' committee was summoned for a pre-layoff hearing. The Histadrut and the committee argued that the employee was summoned because of his activity in getting workers to sign Histadrut membership forms. Shortly after the petition was filed, the summons was canceled, and at the order of the Tribunal, employees were allowed to extend their break times in order to carry out informational and organizational activities.
The Histadrut alleged that simultaneously with the measures taken by the workers' committee, the company's management began recruiting workers to an internal committee operating on behalf of the company aimed at benefiting the workers. For this purpose, the Histradrut says, management began giving workers forms to sign canceling their membership in the Histradrut.
According to the workers' committee and the Histadrut, workers allege that in some cases, forms that were supposedly signed by workers, including two committee members, had in fact never been signed by them. Workers also allege that in recent days, management had canceled a social event planned for them in a Kiryat Gat hall as punishment for organizing.
Flyers distributed at the plant stated, "Remember the number of factories that closed down in the area as a result of the entry of parties having external interests: No to the Histradrut." The flyers also stated that the internal workers' organization planned to take measures to maintain the company's current volume of business and "prevent the transfer of the plant's business overseas."
"We regret that SodaStream CEO Daniel Birnbaum has chosen to abuse the workers in a contemptible attempt to thwart the democratic organization of the workers. Despite his many assets and great wealth, Birnbaum is doing everything he can to harm the working man at his company, and is not hesitating to use any means. The worldwide image he is trying to create for himself as a man of peace who respects everyone is far from what he is actually doing," the workers' committee stated.
Workers at SodaStream are seeking a dialogue with the company's management for the purpose of improving their employment terms, with pay rises and higher social elements, such as pensions contributions, recreation pay, and advanced training funds. They also want to improve their employment security, in view of the high turnover of workers at the plant.
SodaStream management said in response, "The company is very surprised at the Histradrut's belligerent actions. Only at the beginning of last week, management received a letter from the Histadrut about the organization's claims to represent the workers. Just two days after that, before the date that the Histadrut itself set in its letter, a labor dispute was declared in the matter.
"The behavior of the Histadrut and its representatives is hard to understand and illogical, because management was not given a reasonable time to consider the complaint, as is usual in such cases, before the belligerent and unilateral measure of declaring a labor dispute was taken. This is not the behavior of an organization purporting to work for the good of all the company's workers. This is aggressive and unscrupulous behavior aimed at damaging the company's management and CEO.
"As for the allegations about violation of the right to organize, the company allowed Histadrut representatives to enter the grounds of the plant and meet with the workers, and we are behaving according to law and rulings in this matter."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 24, 2016
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