Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07TELAVIV866
2007-03-20 16:36:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Tel Aviv
Cable title:  

NATIONAL STRIKE IN ISRAEL COULD SHUT DOWN AIRPORTS

Tags:  ELAB IS PGOV 
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VZCZCXRO0491
RR RUEHROV
DE RUEHTV #0866 0791636
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 201636Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0115
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000866 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB IS PGOV
SUBJECT: NATIONAL STRIKE IN ISRAEL COULD SHUT DOWN AIRPORTS
STARTING WEDNESDAY

REF: A) 2006 TEL AVIV 4695 B) 2007 TEL AVIV 835 - NOTAL

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 000866

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB IS PGOV
SUBJECT: NATIONAL STRIKE IN ISRAEL COULD SHUT DOWN AIRPORTS
STARTING WEDNESDAY

REF: A) 2006 TEL AVIV 4695 B) 2007 TEL AVIV 835 - NOTAL


1. (SBU) The National labor congress, Histadrut, will launch
a full-fledged nationwide strike on March 21 that will shut
down airports, seaports, land crossings and railroads. In a
March 20 meeting with Labor Reporting Officer (LRO),
Government Employees Union Chairman Ariel Yacobi claimed that
PM Olmert had reneged on promises to Histadrut chairman Eini
(Ref A and Ref B). Unless the government offers a guarantee
that it would pay the missing salaries and pension payments
owed to more than 5000 municipal and religious council
employees in full by the end of the week, Yacobi said the
strike would begin as promised at 0600 on March 21.
Sanitation and electrical workers would be among the unions
joining the transportation sector, according to Yacobi, who
told LRO that the private sector -- as well as
quasi-governmental organizations, such as the Bank of Israel,
which recently suspended its strike to continue negotiations
-- would not be part of this walkout. Buses, banks and the
stock market will operate as usual, according to Israeli
press reports.


2. (SBU) Yacobi emphasized that Israel "can't have a
democratic society without rules," and accused Olmert of
failing to comply with court orders to pay back salaries to
employees of 37 municipalities. Yacobi said he had
anticipated that PM Olmert would solve the problem, given the
"low" sums of money involved -- 100 million NIS (about USD 25
million) would be enough to cover the missing salaries and
pension payments, in his view. Yacobi also noted that Arab
towns were disproportionately affected and Jewish towns were
more likely to be "take care of" by the government. The
Minister of Interior, Ronnie Bar-On, who oversees municipal
affairs within the GOI, reported to Israeli Army Radio on
March 20 that most of the unpaid workers would receive their
wages on March 20, and that the only employees who will not
be paid are those belonging to local authorities that have
run up large deficits.

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