Palestinian workers at Erez corssing
Photo: AP
Palestinians unable to sue Israeli employers
Labor Court instructs Palestinian workers who filed lawsuit against Israeli employer to pay large fee in order for court to handle case
A court ruling issued last week indicates that Palestinian workers will in fact not be able to sue their Israeli employers, Israel's leading newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported Wednesday.
According to a decision made by the Be'er Sheva District Labor Court last week, Palestinian workers from Gaza who filed 81 lawsuits totaling NIS 23 million (about USD 5.1 million) against their Israeli employer will have to pay a fee in order for their case to be handled by the court.
In the specific case, the fee amounts to 1 percent of the lawsuit, which totals NIS 230 million (about USD 51 million). It is expected that the Gazan workers will find it difficult to pay the fee, and therefore their lawsuit will be rejected.
Attorney Baruch Katzman, representing the Israeli employer from the Erez industrial zone, asked the court to instruct the workers to pay a fee before the lawsuit against his client is handled.
The workers claimed that they deserve compensation on the basis of holding back wages and dismissal compensation. Once the lawsuit was filed, they asked the court to cancel the fee payment.
At first, the court at first accepted their request and dismissed them from paying the fee. However, after the Israeli employer claimed that he had not been aware of the request to cancel the fee payment, the court instructed the workers to pay the fee.
Attorney Katzman said in response that "this is an important decision that does justice with employers exposed to exaggerated fruitless lawsuits."
