Israel's Defense Ministry Replaces Bonuses with Salary Raises in New Labor Deal

The Israeli Ministry of Defense, the Histadrut labor federation, and the ministry's workers' committee have signed a new collective labor agreement set to run until August 31, 2030. This agreement abolishes a decades-old system of performance-based bonuses, replacing them with permanent salary increases for employees. According to Maariv, administrative staff, professionals with higher education, engineers, and technicians will receive a 14.3% permanent raise. Social workers are set to receive an increase ranging from 10.73% to 15%. These new additions to salaries will be factored into pension and social benefit calculations. Additionally, 25% of eligible employees will annually receive bonuses for high performance, amounting to several thousand shekels. The agreement also includes a fixed payment for senior employees from middle management upwards, a monthly incentive for perfect attendance, and a new system of targeted bonuses for student workers. Histadrut chairman Arnon Bar-David stated that the new model ensures employees' pension security, replacing an outdated remuneration system that had been in place for 62 years.