An end to sanctions in high schools. The Ministry of Finance and the teachers' organization have reached interim agreements in which the teachers will receive an advance for the December paycheck of 2,400 NIS, the vacation schedule will only change for the coming school year. The agreement is until December when a permanent agreement is expected to be signed.
According to the signed agreement, studies will be held during Esther's fast, Isru Chag Passover, and Isru Chag Shavuot, and in their place, a 'bridge' will be made between Yom Kippur and Sukkot when these days will be days off. It was also agreed that the teaching staff in the upper divisions, who are employed as part of the 'Oz LaTmura' reform, will receive an advance in the amount of 2,400 NIS, and teachers who are not employed in this framework will receive an advance of 1,500 NIS.
As part of the interim agreement, the teachers' organization pledged to stop all the sanctions it had taken. Also, the grades that were not reported due to the sanctions in the 2018 academic year will be reported to the Examinations Division of the Ministry of Education, so that the students can receive their graduation certificates for the 2018 school year.
The Minister of Education, Yoav Kisch, said: "I congratulate the teachers' organization and the Ministry of Finance for the interim agreement signed today. The sanctions and threats of a strike have been lifted and the education system is returning to full normality. The Ministry of Education under my leadership will continue to strengthen the status of the teacher and improve the conditions of employment of teachers in Israel."
In the letter sent by the chairman of the teachers' organization, Ran Erez, he wrote: "I would like to thank all those who religiously followed the instructions of the teachers' organization and carried out the sanctions according to their letter and words. Only your determination and organizational discipline made it possible to reach an agreement without strike days and without harm to wages and the educational framework. I am hopeful that we have begun to take the first steps on the long road to improving our wages and working conditions and establishing the teaching profession and the status of teachers in society."
