Israel - Railway union members detained and strike declared ‘illegal’ (2012)

Histadrut - General Federation of Labour in Israel obtained an injunction announcing a labour dispute involving Israel Railways following the Transportation Minister’s threat to close down the company if it did not implement comprehensive safety reforms. A half-day rail strike ended after members of the rail workers’ union were released from detention after half a day. The rail workers trade union announced the strike without prior notice after the arrest of 10 union members during a demonstration outside the home of the new chair of Israel Railways on 11 May.

On 16 May, the Tel Aviv Labor Court ruled that Israel Railways workers were forbidden to go on strike before 1 July. The court ordered the sides to hold negotiations over the next two weeks. Despite various negotiations, the dispute continued and in September the Tel Aviv District Labour Court ruled a further strike by Israel Railways (IR) workers was politically-motivated, and consequently illegal. The court ruled that workers must return to work and that the union must enter into renewed negotiations. Sanctions were imposed after talks between labour and management on planned structural reforms broke down. Nine workers were later suspended from employment after they stopped the laying of new track in late September.

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