Why we must complete the mission against Iran and cut off the head of the snake once and for all

In recent weeks, the conflict between Israel and Iran has reached a boiling point...

Graffiti, Gentrification and Broken Fingers

Art in the public space is defined as art that is accessible to everyone, without...

The new commercial center and the first public services building in Hadar Carmel

At the intersection of Herzl and Bialik streets lies an international-style commercial building,...

Flower of the week • Jaffa Salmon

Carmel presents us with flowers in all seasons. In this column...

While the world trembles: How to help children coping with fear during wartime

While adults follow updates and analyze the situation, children...

Teachers and kindergarten teachers in Haifa and the Krayots go on strike: "Italian strike" against pay cuts

(haipo) – A storm among the teaching staff: Thousands of teachers and kindergarten teachers are angry about a 3.3% cut in their salaries following the "Economic Efficiency Law," and have decided to fight back.

An "Italian strike" is planned for 04/05/2025, in which teachers and kindergarten teachers will declare illness - thereby effectively shutting down educational institutions. This is an unprecedented struggle led by the workers themselves, without official leadership, in response to further harm to their livelihoods. The protest is organized on social media and WhatsApp groups, and reflects not only a struggle over wage conditions - but a call for independence, respect and recognition.

Precedented decision: Italian teachers' and kindergarten teachers' strike to begin on Sunday

This coming Saturday, 3/5/25, an unusual action by teachers and kindergarten teachers is expected to take place: instead of coming to work on Sunday, they will announce on Saturday evening that they are sick - thereby disrupting the opening of educational institutions.

The goal of the move is one: to convey a clear message to decision-makers – teaching staff will no longer be the state's "milk cow," who pays during wartime and receives nothing during normal times. This time, they decided to initiate and carry out the protest themselves, without waiting for the representative unions.

Teachers and kindergarten teachers launch their fight to cancel the pay cut
Teachers and kindergarten teachers launch their fight to cancel the pay cut

Sudden salary cut: Teachers and retirees are shocked by the size of the bill

Yesterday, Thursday, 01/05/2025, teachers and kindergarten teachers discovered that hundreds of shekels had been deducted from their salaries. The deduction – 3.3% of the monthly salary – was explained as a contribution to finance the salaries of reserve personnel and the reconstruction of the south following the fighting. For teachers and kindergarten teachers, this amounts to between 300 and 800 shekels, and in the cases of spouses in the teaching system – about a thousand shekels that disappeared at once. The impact on wages was severe, but the feeling of injustice, inequality and exclusion fanned the flames.

Anger is rising: Exclusion of other sectors outrages teachers

The teachers and kindergarten teachers explain that what heightened the feeling of harm and discrimination was the knowledge that Haredi teaching staff were exempt from the cuts (teachers who work in Haredi Torah schools are exempt from payment), unlike their counterparts in the state education system.

Moreover, strong unions in other organizations – such as the Israel Electric Company, Rafael, and the port workers – managed to ensure that their employees were excluded from the salary cuts. In contrast, the public of teachers and kindergarten teachers was left without effective protection. The angry voice that rose from the field was sharp: "If we pay – they will all pay. Selective exemption based on sectors or political power is not possible."

On social media: from anger to a stage of organization and rebellion

At first, these were isolated calls in Facebook and WhatsApp groups. Teachers were furious, expressing frustration – and then they began to offer solutions. The idea of ​​an Italian strike quickly gained momentum. Dedicated groups were established, in which teachers and kindergarten teachers coordinated their actions. The decision was simple and practical: allow each to act independently, without needing official approval from the organizations. They would all declare illness – and together they would silence the system.

The leadership position is missing: Where is the chairman of the Teachers' Union?

Quite a few teachers wondered – and loudly – ​​where the Histadrut and where their leadership are. The chairwoman of the Histadrut, Yaffe Ben David, is seen as having imposed silence on herself due to a previous agreement with the Ministry of Finance, according to which she would not shut down the education system. The feeling of abandonment among the field is strong. “We pay membership fees every month – 60 NIS – but when we are really harmed, there is no one to fight for us,” wrote a Haifa teacher in one of the groups. Social media was filled with anger, disappointment – ​​and a decision not to wait any longer.

Yaffe Ben David's response was not long in coming.

The response from the Teachers' Union and its head was not long in coming. On Friday morning, the Teachers' Union announced disruptions in the education system starting Sunday morning.

"I don't have 500 NIS to spare": The economic impact on teachers is tangible and severe

For many teachers and kindergarten teachers, the monthly salary is already low compared to other professions in the public service. Many of them are forced to work a second, and sometimes even a third, job to make a decent living. Another cut – without any compensation or warnings – is a fatal blow.

"I'm a single mother, every shekel is important to me. What am I supposed to do now?" asks a teacher from the Haifa area. Many report real hardship – not symbolic, not abstract – but one that prevents them from buying food, paying rent, maintaining basic financial stability.

Loss of sick days and benefits – a continuous process of attrition

The latest cut is not an isolated incident. Last summer, teachers lost one day of sick leave. This summer, they are set to lose two. Other benefits have also been reduced during the year. The feeling among the workers is that this is a consistent policy of attrition: less money, less appreciation, less support – and more expectations. The fact that this is a predominantly female profession increases the feeling that this is gender discrimination in every sense of the word.

The modern teacher: both teacher, warrior, and punching bag

One of the recurring claims among female teachers is that no one really protects them. They are expected to teach, mentor, educate, and solve students' emotional problems - and do so out of a sense of mission. But when the state needs money - they are the first to be hurt. "The public praises reservists - and rightly so - but why does a teacher who earns 7,000 NIS net have to finance it, while someone who works in high-tech earns three times that and doesn't pay a shekel?" asks a teacher from Kiryat Bialik.

Parents in the eye of the storm: Will they choose to support or fight?

Parents play a key role in the development of the protest. This coming Sunday, when kindergartens and classrooms remain closed, it is the parents who will be forced to find a solution for their children. Will they choose to support the teaching staff and give them public support, or will they blame them? This is a question that will determine the direction of the struggle. The more teachers and kindergarten teachers feel that they have support from the field, the greater the chance of success.

Finance officials warn: There will be no payment for false sick days – but teachers are determined

The Ministry of Finance did not remain indifferent. Initial announcements published towards the end of the week warned that sick days would not be paid to teaching staff who provided false sick certificates. But the teachers did not panic. On the contrary – the threat was received as confirmation that the protest was successful. "They are afraid. A sign that we are on the right track," wrote one of the teachers in a dedicated group.

Not just an economic struggle: a call for a sense of value, respect, and appreciation

Behind the upcoming strike is not only a demand to cancel the cuts – but a deeper need: recognition.

Recognition that teachers are not punching bags, who cannot be hit time and time again and expect silence. This is a call for true equality – sectoral, gender, economic and moral. The fact that the struggle began on 01/05 – Workers' Day – did not go unnoticed by the participants. There is deep symbolism in this: working women, who lead one of the most important systems in the country – education – demand fair treatment.

Will the teachers be able to win alone? The challenge is still ahead of them

The current organization is meaningful, but also fragile. Without the backing of a representative body, without a budget, and without formal means of pressure – the question is whether the public of kindergarten teachers and teachers will be able to sustain the strike over time. On the other hand, the power of female solidarity, of close cooperation between thousands of teachers – is a force that cannot be underestimated. The question is who will blink first – the finance minister or the teachers.

The Ministry of Finance's response will be attached to the article when received.

contact: At watsapBy email

Michal Grover
Michal Grover
Michal Grover Education reporter • Real estate • Company Contact: 054-4423911 Mail to the container: [email protected]

Articles related to this topic

4 תגובות

  1. What's new is a populist struggle by teachers with media and public support (who among us doesn't have a relative from the education system?) with perhaps the most powerful organizations in the economy.
    So as usual, the teachers' unions always win and no one really cares about the other employees, who, for example, are also getting a sick day off, for the second year in a row.
    Because there are teachers and there are just employees.

  2. Shame, what a treat.
    They have excellent wages in the economy relative to their actual working days and yet they complain and want to strike? Audacity!
    It's time to break this fat monopoly, to compare their working days to parents in other sectors or to transfer them to hourly wage contracts.
    The ones who should demonstrate are the poor parents and students.

  3. Kudos to the teachers who are no longer willing to be the treasury's punching bag. Throughout the years of the state, they waved a moral flag: "Only the children pay the price of the shutdown." This is completely untrue. Teachers who are not valued and not rewarded react with their feet and abandon the system, then complain that achievement has declined...

  4. It's not entirely clear. If they cut 3.3 percent, then someone who had their salary cut by 500 NIS has over 15000 NIS, and someone who had their salary cut by 800 NIS has over 24000 NIS. Are these the "low" salaries paid in the education system????

Leave a comment

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

All the articles are alive

Learn to save lives now! • Emergency building trustees

(Live here) - Lifesaving course: MDA invites you to take on a vital and lifesaving role - building trustees for emergencies. Free course. Announcement...

The scene of the interceptor crash in Haifa – Aki Flexer in an interview with Orly Alkalai – 22/6/25

(Hai Fa) - Direct hit on a residential building in Haifa: "A great miracle thanks to civil discipline" Today (Sunday, 22/6/25), in the afternoon, I arrived at the scene of a collapse in Haifa, following reports of...

What happens to our bodies when we are under continuous stress? The impact of cortisol on health

(Live here) - In the Israeli reality, where stress has become almost a way of life, especially against the backdrop of the wars, the Home Front Command warnings, the constant sense of threat and the panic that accompanies...

Haifa under fire: Tens of thousands of residents left without available protected space

(Hai Fa) – As the war with Iran progresses and continues, a grim picture is becoming clearer: Haifa is in the line of fire. The municipality and the state are having difficulty protecting all of its residents....

Lack of an alarm, attacks in the Hadar neighborhood, and public outrage over the lack of protection – who will take care of the residents?

(Live Here) – On the morning of Sunday, June 22, 2025, at 7:30, the Hadar neighborhood in Haifa woke up to a harsh reality. Shortly after the American attack on Iran, a...