Translated material
Put on flip-flops and went to the Foreign Ministry
Israeli diplomats demand decent salaries
Employees of the Israeli Foreign Ministry decided to take extreme measures in their demands for a salary increase. They declared a general strike, during which they stopped working to accompany foreign visits of members of the Israeli government and deputies. In addition, they provide almost no assistance during the arrival of foreign delegations to Israel. Employees of the Israeli Foreign Ministry still go to work, although no longer in suits and boots, but in jeans and Crocs (flip-flops). Such clothing, in their opinion, should show the deplorable state of the family budget of an ordinary Israeli diplomat.The strike began on June 27, and at first it was planned that it would not last long. However, Vremya Novostei learned that the diplomats have not yet achieved their demands, and their protest action will continue. The first person it affected was Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during his visit to Israel at the end of June. All bureaucratic components of the visit had to be handled personally by Deputy Foreign Minister Dani Ayalon, who met the Russian delegation. As a result, he himself rolled out the red carpet at the last moment in front of the Russian plane.
According to the VN correspondent, a hitch also occurred with the flags at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, where Sergei Lavrov held meetings with the Israeli establishment. Since Foreign Ministry employees refused to accompany the visit, the flags in the meeting room were hung by hotel workers, who once confused the Russian and Italian flags. It was possible to change the Italian flag to a Russian one just minutes before the start of the meeting between the Russian minister and the leader of the Israeli opposition, Ms. Tzipi Livni.
The Foreign Ministry strike also affected Israeli officials. Thus, at the end of June, the visit of Israeli National Security Advisor Uzi Arad to Moscow was canceled. The only thing for which Israeli diplomats made an exception was the visit of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United States from July 6 to 7. According to VN, for the sake of the meeting between the Israeli prime minister and American President Barack Obama, the work of the Israeli embassy in Washington was partially restored.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry trade union decided to take drastic measures for the second time in six months. The last time there was a strike by Israeli diplomats was at the end of February, but then the strike sanctions led to nothing. “The end date of the strike depends on negotiations between the trade union of employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance. As soon as an agreement is reached that suits our trade union, the work of the Israeli Foreign Ministry will be completely restored,” a press officer for the Israeli Foreign Ministry, who wished to remain anonymous, told VN. According to our newspaper, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman does not influence the solution to the problem, taking a neutral position.
Diplomats are demanding that their benefits, working conditions and wages be equalized with those of intelligence and security officials. According to Foreign Ministry employees, their salary is one and a half to two times less than the salary of a representative of the Israeli security services.
The average salary of an Israeli Foreign Ministry employee who is not traveling abroad is 7 thousand shekels (approximately $1,800). Young diplomats earn even less. If we take into account that the wives of diplomats are rarely able to make a career for themselves, since they are forced to constantly accompany their husbands on trips abroad, then it is impossible to support a family in Israel with this money. The diplomats with whom the VN correspondent was able to communicate did not reveal the exact amount they receive during foreign business trips. Usually it is much higher than when the employee remains in their home country, but our interlocutors referred to the fact that this salary greatly depends on the country to which they are sent. Moreover, they all noted that this amount is far from the desired one.