One week after a wave of train drivers calling in sick, the Israel Railways workers' committee today officially began sanctions. Passenger schedules will not be affected at this point, but if the sanctions continue, scheduled trains may be late, or even canceled.
The sanctions involve 1,500 workers. Among other things, courses for controllers and signalers will be shut down, the supply of spare parts and the handling of equipment in the Beersheva depot will be affected, training sessions will be called off, and car drivers and administrative workers in Lod will go on strike. The sanctions are beginning following a week in which many railway passengers were affected by the closing down of the Rehovot station, one of Israel's busiest, for infrastructure work.
The workers' committee says that the main reason for the sanctions is management's decision to eliminate jobs and lay off operational and clerical staff "while hiring more and more managers and giving bonuses to the senior executives who caused Israel Railways' deficit."
Management says that the drivers' work schedules are the main reason for the sanctions. They assert that the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel) and the workers' committee reneged on agreements for the new work arrangements in which locomotive drivers will drive four hours in a shift instead of three and a half hours at present (the collective labor agreement allows six hour of driving in an eight and a half-hour shift). Management further contends that unacknowledged sanction are liable to cause delays and cancellations in passenger trains.
Before the new schedules for the drivers requiring each driver to driver more hours in a shift take effect, the workers' committee petitioned the labor court on Friday. The court dismissed the petition for an injunction, meaning that the new work arrangements will go into effect on Tuesday, when the Israel Railways workers' committee and management have another court hearing scheduled.
The workers' committee stated, "The workers' committee cannot accept a situation in which management does whatever it feels like, announcing dozens of layoffs and cutting jobs and hours, puts an unbearable burden on the workers; detracts from the wages and work of the drivers, supervisors, cashiers, shift managers, and station managers; prevents progress in negotiations with the freight division, etc. No progress is being made in the negotiations, because management is insisting on doing harm to the workers. Management did not accept any of the many compromise proposals made by the Histadrut chairperson this morning. In order to protect the workers and safeguard their basic rights, we have no choice left other than sanctions. These measures will not affect railway passenger traffic."
Israel Railways management stated, "Regular traffic of passenger trains is again in jeopardy, because the Histadrut and the workers' representatives have reneged on the agreements for putting the revised schedule into effect. The workers' committee, with backing from the Histadrut, is conducting unacknowledged sanctions liable to cause the cancellation and delay of regular passenger trains. Management and the Histadrut reached these agreements two weeks ago. The company's management appreciates the drivers and their work, and is aware that the workers do not support this disruption, which was forced on them by a belligerent, uncontrolled, and irresponsible workers' committee. Management calls on the workers' committee to calm down, behave responsibly, be an active and positive partner in the important processes taking place at Israel Railways, and refrain from harming the workers and hundreds of thousands of passengers."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on March 3, 2019
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