Three-day strike closes down religious services

A three-day strike of all of the country's religious services started Tuesday morning, after a vote Monday by the committee representing all municipal rabbis and the Clerks Union. The two chief rabbis, Rabbi Yona Metzger and Rabbi Shlomo Amar, have given their blessing to the strike.

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The strike involves some 3,500 people, who are employed by 50 religious councils or work in the offices of municipal rabbis. Burial hours have been limited and cemetery gates will be locked except during funerals. No marriages are being registered, certificates of unmarried status are not being issued, and weddings set for rabbinate wedding halls will be cancelled during the three-day strike. No meat will be slaughtered, as kashrut supervisors will not be present at the slaughterhouses.


Stern explained that the main reason for the strike is the long delay in the payment of workers' salaries. He also said that salaries have been delayed for periods ranging from two months to two years and in most cases, salaries have not been paid for five months. "Even in places where salaries have been paid on time, the workers are not receiving their social benefits," Stern emphasized.

According to Stern, another reason for the strike is the collapse of religious services. "In many communities there is no budget to heat the women's ritual baths or to supervise the kashrut of food products sold in restaurants and stores," Stern said.

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http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/402791.html

While services to Palestinians are being upgraded, even essential services to Israeli Jews are being denied do to lack of funds. The workers haven't been paid in over two months.

The only bright spot is that ritual baths are operating normally.