The Labor and Welfare Committee, headed by MK Israel Eichler, on Thursday approved for second and third readings the government's bill to raise the minimum remuneration for reservists recruited for service in an iron sword war starting October 7, from NIS 215 to NIS 300 a day.
In a discussion that was also attended by representatives from the National Insurance Institute, the Ministry of Defense and the Association for Reservists, it was decided to extend it again in case the war continues, in order to give certainty to the reservists and prevent the need for repeated extensions.
National Insurance Institute Attorney Roy Israel Keret explained at the hearing: "Reserve benefits are paid on the basis of the servant's salary, but those whose salary is low or who do not earn have so far received about NIS 215 per day. The temporary order asks to raise this to NIS 300 a day. Initially, only those who were drafted under Order 8 were discussed, but we now ask that this be applied to all reservists during the war."
, Labor and Welfare Committee - raising minimum remuneration for reservists. Photo: Photo: Knesset Spokesperson's Office - Danny Shem Tov
MK Moshe Saada sought to link the salaries of reservists to the average wage in the economy: "Many of those servants who are entitled to the minimum compensation are young students who recently completed their service and are at the forefront of the fighting, our bulletproof vest. Until 2022, the state took care of their average wage in the economy, slowly it eroded and reached the minimum wage, and unfortunately there are not many people who come to represent them in the Knesset." Committee Chairman MK Eichler expressed support for linking the salaries of those serving to the average wage, and noted that after the approval of the current law, which will provide an immediate response to the needs of the hour, the committee will work to promote the process vis-à-vis government ministries.
The purpose of the amendment is to provide a response and assistance to reservists
Pazit Tidhar, Ministry of Defense: "This amendment is part of a government decision made last week, with a budget of almost NIS 8 billion, aimed at providing a response and assistance to the reservists recruited under Order <>. Another part of the decision is a fund to assist reservists who suffered economic damage, refunds for air tickets, wage differences vis-à-vis servants whose center of life and livelihood is abroad, and more. The issue of minimum remuneration has been on the desk of the ministry and the army for quite some time, there is a desire to regulate it and also linkage to the average salary. We hope that we will be able to promote this after the war. The goal was to reach a temporary solution at the moment, obviously not satisfactory, but it is better at the moment to promote it for a temporary period than for there to be no correction."
MK Moshe Tor Paz, who himself came directly from reserve duty, said: "Every time the issue of indexation to the average salary came up for discussion, the Defense Ministry did not stand by the reservists. I expect the Defense Ministry to be the first to stand up for the rights of the reservists, not for us to fight for them. MK Tor Paz proposed that starting with 30 days of service, against every ten days of service, the position would be paid an additional day, in order to allow him days of rest and organization before returning to work. Representatives of the Ministry of Defense explained that there are already a number of mechanisms that financially reward those who serve against prolonged reserve service, starting with ten days of service, including a grant of NIS 5,600 for those who serve more than 37 days a year. However, they clarified that if the fighting continues and it emerges that they do not provide a satisfactory response to those who serve, the ministry will work to formulate additional responses."
MK Israel Eichler, Labor and Welfare Committee - Raising the Minimum Remuneration for Reservists, Photo: Knesset Spokesperson's Office - Danny Shem Tov
A uniform grant for all those who serve in the amount of NIS 1100
When asked by MK Meir Cohen, Finance Ministry Budget Department representative Ali Bing detailed the benefits to which a person who serves in the reserves for one month is entitled, in addition to the basic remuneration for his service: According to him, the servant will receive a grant of NIS 1250, and an additional uniform grant for all those who serve in the amount of NIS 1100. If he has children under the age of 14 – an additional NIS 2000, as well as an additional compensation for prolonged service of NIS 4230. In total, He said the servant would receive $8,580, beyond the basic remuneration determined by his salary.
Ofir Tal, the Association for Reservists, commented on the compensation fund that will be established by virtue of the government's decision: "The fund was budgeted at NIS 70 million. We read that the rewards for families will also go into this fund, and if so, it will not be enough. Even after Operation Protective Edge, such a NIS 30 million fund was established, and half of it was not implemented in a wave of draconian regulations that made it impossible to implement it. We want to be part of formulating the bylaws of this fund in order to prevent a recurrence of this situation." Regarding linkage of the minimum remuneration to the average wage in the economy, he said: "We have been struggling on this issue for many years. The finance and defense ministries reject us with straws, and if the committee doesn't follow up on the issue, it will fizzle out."
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