A Labor Party banner in Hebrew
Labor
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Labor (“Avodah” in Hebrew) is Israel’s major center-left political party and is currently headed by Shimon Peres. The modern Labor Party can be traced to Mapai (Land of Israel Workers Party), founded in the 1930s.
Mapai was the dominant political faction in Zionist politics and also created Hashomer and the Haganah, the first two armed Jewish groups in Palestine prior to 1948.
David Ben-Gurion, who declared Israel’s independence and was Israel’s first prime minister, rose to power in the early 1930s and led Mapai for almost two decades.
Labor’s close association with the Histadrut Labor Federation and the Kibbutz Movement helped the party dominate Israeli politics for 30 years.
In 1971, Mapai merged with other Labor Zionist parties to form the Labor Alignment, which became the modern Labor Party.
Labor held the prime minister’s office from the founding of the state through 1977. Labor prime ministers include David Ben-Gurion (1948-1954, 1955-1963) Moshe Sharett (1954-1955), Levi Eshkol (1963-1969), Golda Meir (1969-1974), Yitzhak Rabin (1974-1977, 1992-1995), Shimon Peres (1984-1986, 1995-1996) and Ehud Barak (1999-2001).
Labor has always been the ruling party or leading opposition party. Labor has traditionally been closely affiliated with the Kibbutz Movement and identified with Israel’s Ashkenazi population (Jews of European descent.)
Labor is no longer a socialist party. While it retains membership in the Socialist International, it has a social liberal platform.
Labor in the past was more hawkish on security and defense issues than today. It was the Labor Party under Rabin and Peres that negotiated the Oslo Accords with the Palestine Liberation Organization.
In general, the Labor Party supports peace negotiations with the Palestinians and dismantling most settlements, although some Laborites demand an end to terror before resuming talks.
