Industralists say they are not concerned by Peretz win
צילום: דני דגן
Industrialists not worried by Peretz win
Leading industrialist Steff Wertheimer: Election of Peretz proves Left, Right have failed
Senior industrialists in Israel are not concerned about the election of Histadrut (Labor Union) Chairman Amir Peretz to the leadership of the Labor party, despite Peretz's repeated demands to raise the minimum wage.
Speaking to Israel's leading news sourceYnet on Thursday, leading industrialist Steff Wertheimer said: "I'm not at all worried about Amir Peretz, despite the fact that I completely disagree with his views. On the contrary, the fact that he was elected will sharpen the differences between the Left and Right in Israel, and show that both sides have failed."
'Rise in the minimum wage may shake economy'
"As opposed to others, Amir Peretz is an old-style classic Leftist. He represents a Left that has not gone through the reforms that Tony Blair and Europe have undertaken, and I therefore expect him to disappear along with the strikes and the populist calls. The Left and the Right are both expected to clear the political map for the only remaining alternative, and that is the Center.
Shraga Barush, Chairman of the Industrialists' Union, told Ynet: "The Union opposes the raising of the minimum wage since this will result in the firing of tens of thousands of workers. But the average wage in industry is NIS 9,500 (about USD 2,065) a month, and therefore the minimum wage does not have a major impact on industry. I'm not worried, and on a personal level, I congratulate Amir, with whom we have worked for a long time."
Despite the claims of calm, Yair Weinberg, head of the metal branch of the Industrialists' Union, said: "The truth is that there is no industrialist who is not worried about the rise of a politician who calls for an increase in the minimum wage. Our fear is of the minimum wage itself, only a few in the industry - and certainly in the metal industry – are on that wage, but rather from a chain reaction. If minimum wage goes up, the wages of clerks and technicians, who earn just a little more than the minimum wage, will also rise, and such a chain reaction can have a worrying impact on industry."
David Artzi, Chairman of the Exports Institute, said that the election of Peretz "is not good."
"We have a stable economy and a rise in the minimum wage may shake it. I want the minimum wage to rise out of principle, but only after we reach a level of growth that we are currently far from reaching."
