Carmel Fire
Photo curtsey of Knesset TV
Treasury, firefighters sign new wage deal
New agreement regulates wages, terms of employment of new firefighters who are accepted to the national fire and rescue services; promotes government planned reforms
Attorney Kobi Amsalem, responsible for wages and wage agreements in the Finance Ministry, and representatives from the firefighters
association and the Histadrut
Labor Union signed a collective wages agreement on Sunday night.
The new agreement regulates the wages and terms of employment of new firefighters who are accepted to the national fire and rescue services.
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The collective wage agreement allows for the promotion of the reforms in the fire and rescue services and designed to establish a National Authority for firefighting and rescue services at the Ministry of Public Security in 2013, to replace the current system where 24 unions are involved in providing these services to Israel's citizens.
The agreement includes regulating the transfer of workers who were employed by the various fire and rescues services throughout the country to the civil service, in accordance with the regulations that apply to all civil servants.
As these employees provide life saving services, the agreement includes a separate facet that touches upon a special mechanism for declaring and activating a labor dispute.
The employees' rights, including wage increases, social conditions, pensions and more will be kept. Moreover, employees will receive a one time bonus of NIS 10,000 ($2,524) per fireman which will be given to the employees in two installments. Moreover, each employee will receive a wage increase of up to 15% in accordance with seniority in three installments.
The agreement will also see employees receive recompense for shift work, weekends and overtime. New firemen will also receive a salary increase of 13%. The Histadrut claims that the agreement solves problems that have accompanied firefighters for many years in union employment.
It should be mentioned that the Carmel Fire disaster and the severity of the conclusions of a report into the disaster led to a major public outcry, but as yet, implementation of the conclusions has been held up.
The planned reform package was set to be voted on in the Knesset plenum before the end of the current session, but bureaucratic difficulties have led to further delays.
The reform plan includes transferring the firefighters to one government authority which would operate under the aegis of the Ministry for Public Security. It seeks to lay the needed legal groundwork for the operation of a national authority.
