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Israeli lawmakers get pay rise amid outrage over cost of living hike

Salaries of MKs and state officials automatically adjusted as Israelis brace for rises in electricity, water and food prices.

The wage of Israeli parliamentarians, ministers and other senior civil servants is expected to rise by thousands of shekels at the start of 2019, even as the public is protesting about an anticipated jump in the cost of living, as food, electricity, and water prices are set to soar in the coming year.

 

 

The salary increase is down to the fact that Knesset members and civil servants have their salaries automatically updated according to past year's average wage index.

 

Knesset plenum
Knesset plenum

 

MKs can reject the pay rise, which some have done in recent years. The Kulanu party, which is headed by Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, decided on Monday that all of its members would waive their pay raise. A document signed by all party members relinquishing the increase was submitted to the Knesset accountant, Haim Avidror.

 

The exact wage increase has yet to be determined as it is based on a National Insurance Institute index, which will only be issued in January. However, according to the index average wage change index calculated by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the average wage has risen during the first nine months of 2018 by 2.5%. Assuming this index continues to rise, it is expected to reach a rate of 3%.

 

If this is the case, all MKs and deputy ministers are expected to receive an additional NIS 1,100 (approx. $300) per month, while ministers would get an extra NIS 1,200. The prime minister's salary would increasedby some NIS 1,360 per month.

   

At the beginning of 2018, outcry erupted over a minister's demand that their salaries be also linked to the average wage index.

 

The minister, whose wage at the time was linked to the consumer price index, argued that a relatively static CPI index meant he and his colleagues were being treated unfairly. The Knesset Finance Committee held several discussions on the matter, ultimately deciding to link the ministers' wages to the average wage index, which meant their salaries rise each year.

 

This addition to their salaries, MKs, deputy ministers and the prime minister receive a monthly wage supplement of NIS 3,400 (approx. $900). Furthermore, each MK is entitled to expenses of NIS 150 for every day the Knesset plenum convenes, as well as a private car and full coverage for gas.

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 12.19.18, 14:13
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