Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich welcomed the agreement reached between the Finance Ministry and the Teachers' Union, saying he is 'glad that Yaffa Ben-David and the Education Minister came to their senses and entered into swift negotiations so that public sector wage freezes will apply to teachers by mutual agreement.' He added: 'The practice of threatening strikes at the expense of students and parents in Israel needs to end. I'm pleased we found a formula that will have minimal impact on teachers, just as we did with other public sector organizations.'