Negotiations between the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel), the heads of the Bromine Compounds and Dead Sea Works workers committees, and Israel Chemicals (TASE: ICL: NYSE: ICL) management will be renewed in the coming days, Histadrut chairman Avi Nissenkorn and Nir Gilad, chairman of Israel Chemicals controlling shareholder Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO), today agreed.
Agreement on the new talks was achieved at the end of a lengthy meeting in the offices of Beersheva District Labor Court President Orly Sella. The workers committees and the Histadrut petitioned the court to void the layoffs procedure at these enterprises, alleging that they were illegal and in contravention of the collective work agreements at the plants.
Following Israel Chemicals' cost-cutting program, which includes layoffs at Bromine Compounds and Dead Sea Works, the workers at the plants and the Histadrut went on strike over three months ago. Attempts to settle the dispute between the parties through negotiations have failed.
At the end of today's meeting, Nissenkorn and Gilad agreed that the parties would report their progress in the talks to the Beersheva District Labor Court next Thursday. Judge Sella ruled that if the parties do not reach understandings for settling the disputes between them and resumption of business at the two plants by then, she will settle the dispute herself in a brief proceeding on May 18.
Bromine Compounds workers committee chairman Avner Ben-Senior said, "Despite the judge's intention to decide the case in a brief proceeding, it's hard for me to imagine a scenario in which the crisis at Israel Chemicals is solved by judicial fiat. I predict an appeal by the losing side in the proceeding to the National Labor Court, so the legal proceedings in the matter are likely to continue for quite a while."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 7, 2015
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