Palestina - Israeli-owned Quarry continues to ignore demands of Palestinian workers’ union (2012)

In June, Palestinian workers at the Salit Quarry near an Israeli settlement went on strike as part of a longstanding dispute. The workers demanded that management sign a collective agreement with them, raise their salaries, arrange their pension payments and stop withholding their wages. The Israeli-owned Salit quarry is considered a territory subject to Israeli law. It employs some 40 workers, all of them Palestinians from the territories. Most receive the Israeli minimum wage and say they have never been given a pay rise. About four years ago, the quarry workers established a committee, with the help of an advice centre in Israel, and began struggling to improve their working conditions. Upon starting the committee, the workers petitioned the Jerusalem Labor Court and asked to receive proper pay slips and have money transferred to the National Insurance Institute. The court then ordered the management to issue proper pay slips. However, management continued to withhold wages and is evading recognition of the worker’s committee and a negotiated agreement that has taken two years to conclude.

The workers’ actions are the first unionised workers’ struggle of Palestinians confronting Israeli employers in the West Bank occupied territories, in the framework of an Israeli workers’ organisation. The High Court of Justice has in the past recognised the right of Palestinians working in Israeli settlements to receive conditions according to Israeli law. However, the ruling has not yet been properly tested against a private company.

In September, after a three month strike the quarry owners claimed bankruptcy and the Jerusalem Regional Court appointed a trustee to manage the quarry. It is not known if the workers will receive compensation or be taken on by the new owners.

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