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MK proposes day off on Sundays
Amnon Meranda
Published: 14.05.07, 10:28
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29 Talkbacks for this article
1. First really sensible idea Ive heard for ages.
Bryna ,   Rehovot   (05.14.07)
2. Enforcing Shabat
Lindsay Bert ,   Misgav, Israel   (05.14.07)
Shops and industries open on Shabat are swarming with people who like to browse and do their shopping at their leasure (with their families). Doesn't this tell you something? Why punish the entire population? - Those who wish to rest on Saturdays are welcome to do so but leave the other 80% of the country to do what they like doing on Shabat
3. It's about time
Philip ,   Jerusalem, Israel   (05.14.07)
I've suggested this exact compromise many times and my Israeli friends always said it would never work. I'm happy to see someone with common sense in the Knesset. The country will benefit tremendously if this bill succeeds. I truly believe there will be much less tension between religious and secular after this bill is passed, and I think everyone will be a bit more relaxed with an extra day to relax.
4. Amazing, but
Sarah ,   Modiin   (05.14.07)
extra hour during week does not address working mothers. It will require a change in school hours and daycare. Or parents will have to find additional money for babysitters etc.
5. In the order of priorities, this is waaay down there
JPS ,   Efrat   (05.14.07)
Before trying to shake up Israeli society with such a major piece of legislation, the Knesset should clean itself up first. Only then, if Orlev wants to improve the situation of Shabbat and Judaism in general, he should go after cleaning up the religious power system in this country. It's bloated, abusive, excessive, and serves itself, not the Jewish population.
6. 4
(05.14.07)
it seems that everyone will have to adjust. I am assuming that there are not any additional worrking hours in the week. they are only be shifted away from sunday. If this is correct, then your children will be in daycare/school the same ammount of hours. This shouldn't cost anything extra
7. also better for the economy
(05.14.07)
If sunday is freed up for family recreation, think of all the buisnesses that will benefit. Parks, Museaums, zoos.... Not only on a domestic level this may be good but on an international level. Nobody else works on sundays.
8. Making the Christian sabbath ours???Is he mad????
elianna ,   Jerusalem   (05.14.07)
9. Coercion
NYC Girl   (05.14.07)
While the idea may seem appealing on the face of it, I don't see how unleashing the Sabbath police will do anything to improve relations between the secular and religious. The fact is that, by the time most people reach adulthood, they tend to resent having others dictate how they should live their lives, especially when it comes to matters of religious observance.
10. Crazy and impossible
Daniel van Dalen ,   Jerusalem   (05.14.07)
Then ALL companies will require their workers to work until 17:00 on FRIDAY in the WINTER also. NOBODY will be able to work on Friday *AND* get home on time. What if I work in Haifa and live in Jerusalem? And I have to work on Fridays? In the winter? HOW am I going to get home before Shabbat? This crazy law would mean that no religious person will be able to find a normal job anywhere. I would expect such a law from Meretz or Labor. Or no, not even them. Shinui, more like.
11. Orlev forgot about daycare/schools
JPS ,   Efrat   (05.14.07)
"From Monday to Thursday the work day will be nine hours instead of eight as is currently set by law, in order to make up for Sunday's work hours which will be cancelled," Orlev said Orlev should take a month off from the Knesset and go get a real job - and adopt 4 kids: one in maon, one in gan, one in kita gimmel and one in high school. Then he should add an hour of work to the day and figure out how to do that when maon goes till 4pm, gan goes until 1:20PM, tsaharon goes till 430pm, and high school...well, depending on where your kid is that ends anywhere from 12 to 5pm. And Orlev *and* his wife have to take jobs. And both of them have to work an extra hour. So, is he going to also change the education system and daycare to match the new working day? Probably not, cuz MKs don't think that deeply about the problems they cause us.
12. Ditto #1
Ariel ,   Sydney, Australia   (05.14.07)
This is great idea on many levels. If it works in the rest of the world why won't it work in Israel? Because we have sunday off here, I can spend it with my friends who are not observant. It's fantastic!
13. The most objectionable part of the status quo
Ilan ,   Ariel   (05.14.07)
Is that people are coerced into working on Shabbat for economic survival. If the cost of protection of the most basic rights of people who want to keep Shabbat is allowing certain essential services to be open on Shabbat.,,,,, Certainly worth discusing
14. Why not make friday a complete day of rest
Pierre ,   Saxony, Germania   (05.14.07)
.. rather than sunday. And half work day thursday. This way both the secular and torah observant get what they want.
15. Give us Sundays off
roxy ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
Great Idea,finally we will have 2 days of family time liek the rest of the world! This may help with the problems of poor behaivor in our youth,since they will be able to spend more quality time with their parents. Plus it is also good for retail business that way more people will be able to shop with more free time, not to mention the National parks may get an upsurge in visitors,also with the schools maybe we could get longer hours during the week until 3pm. Bravo finally some thing good from the government!
16. #10
Yenta ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
First of all the bill would benefit a big section of society, in terms of family time, as well as improve the economy as well. Secondly how many people commute from Jerusalem to Haifa daily, and I am sure their bosses would be willing to make adjustments for their observent employees. This bill benefits the majority of the people living in this country, so don't the needs of the many out weigh the needs of the few, especially when companies will make exceptions for their observent employees! Also don't you think the kids would benefit from more time with their parents, and longer school hours? If kids and parents spent more time together wouldn't we see a decrease in bullying, and vandelism by the youth ?
17. Mr Orlev - please read this........
Mike Carmel ,   Rishon le Zion   (05.14.07)
Dear Mr Orlev, Your idea to reform the days of rest is interesting, but I think it would be more successful if you combine it with another change which hasn't been mentioned recently, i.e. the extra summertime proposal of Avraham Poraz. Mr Poraz suggested in effect that we move to a different time zone - 1 hour ahead of where we are today - by leaving the current summertime in force over one winter and then introducing a new summertime 1 hour ahead of that to be effective as usual from the following summer onwards. This idea could substantially enhance your day of rest proposal as Friday would become a longer - almost regular - work day. Shabbat would enter around 5pm in December instead of 4pm and around 8 - 8:30pm in summer, thereby facilitating longer work hours. The "price" to pay for this would of course be darker mornings, but even so it would still be light by about 7:30am even in December which isn't too bad and is quite acceptable by European standards. Please consider this proposal Mr Orlev as it would strengthen your argument for a reform in the day of rest situation.
18. NRP’s cynical use of “family values”
Shmuel Addams ,   Jerusalem, Israel   (05.14.07)
If NRP wants to protect religious businesses and kibbutz stores against competition, then just come out and say that’s what you want to do. But please don’t insult the intelligence of the populace by claiming that switching the national day off from Friday to Sunday will somehow magically glue Israel’s deteriorating families back together. If anything, the traditional marriage and family structure in the US and Europe, which you seek to “protect” here in Israel, are on the decline. Do you really see the Israeli family spending more time together in the Sunday-off scenario? I don’t. For middle class families, I see dad (or mom) staying home answering work email via ADSL or cable line while mom (or dad) schleps the kids to an IMAX while she (or he) goes shopping. What’s more, do you see Friday being a productive workday? I don’t. There will be high levels of absenteeism and wastage as observant working moms and dads rush home early (or avoid doing any work at all) as they frantically shop and prepare for Shabbat. It’s just ironic that a party which prides itself on strengthening Israel’s connection to its Jewish roots is proposing that Israel, in effect, “sanctify” Sunday as the day of “rest.” Israel needs a way to be BOTH observant AND economically competitive. Why not just give companies a CHOICE as to which day to give off, and let them decide based on the demographic of their workforce? Or is that too democratic an idea for Mr. Orlev & Co.?
19. 1st labor party in history to support weekend work
Mordechai   (05.14.07)
In normal countries Labor parties are the first ones to demand business close on weekends to protect the workers. The self hate of the left leads Israel to have the only labor movement that demands business have the right to force people to work on Saturdays.
20. sundays off ? for who?
D. T. ,   Eilat   (05.14.07)
I think that Sundays off is a great idea for people in the off ice, government and like sector. Obviously it won't suit everyone and change is always hard in the beginning. Still ordinary people who work in the recreational and retail businesses will still have to work so that the "others" will be able to have their "family" days. So who benefits exactly? Those who work in the "menial" jobs will still have to find someone to take care of the kids and that could cost more being that it will be a day of 200% pay. I work part-time in a money change and we are open everyday. My kids are older but I also give English lessons and will lose a whole afternoon of work which cannot be made up any other time as kids can't study too late. So it won't make a positive difference to me, but then I am not a politician or government worker and my lost pay will not be made up that easily.
21. Weekend
Fussion ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
Why does Israel not behave like a normal country and have a proper weekend like the rest of the world.
22. Friday/Saturday/Sunday
Michael ,   Haifa   (05.14.07)
It has nothing to do when leisure time takes place...it has everything to do with the orthodox effrontery to determine how I spend my spare time. By the same token that I do not tell them what to do with their time, I expect them similarly to mind their own business.
23. Off Their Rockers
David ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
I don't object to a two day weekend. I do object to an ostensibly religious party having any involvement with violations of the sabbath. Its counter to their self-defined image and values. They should start calling themselves something else. Maybe national traditional party, or the "feel good Jewish values without halacha party", or some such, because the idea of their pushing for public transportation on the sabbath, etc, is anything but religious.
24. Yahoooooooooooooooo! I'm all for it!
Talula ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
25. New shabbat law
mabat hadash ,   London UK   (05.14.07)
There is no need to tamper with shabbat legislation. All you need is a little patience. The success of the baal teshuvah movement together with plain and simple demographics will ensure that within ten years there will be a religious majority in Israel and that the torah way of life will be increasingly accepted within the state - without the need for legislation. It will be the shabbat violators who will be in the minority. Meanwhile it is up to the moderate dati community to ensure that their numbers are increased to enable them to counter the influence of more radical and extreme views. But they'll have to work hard: demographics are working against this idealistic scenario.
26. Israel in general is a schnorrer society..One day less
aL   (05.14.07)
one day more of pretending to work really amounts to nothing!
27. It's about time!!!!!
Marcell ,   Israel   (05.14.07)
Good move - it's time to join the rest of the world. It will not affect Shabbat.
28. Stupid as usual
Ehud ,   TA   (05.14.07)
Friday could not be turned into a full working day, because (especially) in the winter observant people and those working in govrnment institutions would have to go home early. In essence, what is suggested is to add an additional day off and damage the economy. I have a better idea: instead of introducing a 2 1/2 day weekend have some sectors start in Israel start working at least 2 1/2 days a week
29. no work on sunday
bear ,   zefat   (05.14.07)
I think the Sun. day off is great. What people don't seem to realize is Fri. is no day off. More people than yo imagine are busy fri. making shabbat preperations, so where's the day off? Also having Sun. off will give rise to much recreational business that barely exists now.
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