Following the example of “kosher” bus lines that initiated separate seating for men and women, the First International Bank of Israel introduced a separate “teller for women only” at its Bnei Brak branch at the PAGI (Poale Agodat Yisrael) Bank.
The bank’s management said that the separation of men and women was done as per the request of the bank’s clients, and in light of the fact that men and women already stood in separate lines naturally.
However, the bank pointed out that the separation would be cancelled during rush hours, and that the “women only” tellers would serve male clients during these times.
PAGI Bank was not the first public service to separate men and women in Israel. Bnei Brak has “kosher” bus lines in which the women take the back seats, and the men take the seats in the front of the bus.
A Bnei Brak synagogue turns the outside pavement into two separate sidewalks, one for men and one for women, and a Jerusalem coffee shop called “Shani” is for “women only."