Gush Etzion Development Company Ordered to Pay Palestinian Guard $36,000
The Jerusalem Regional Labor Court has ruled that the Gush Etzion Development Company must pay a Palestinian worker, Wathef Baradeia, approximately NIS 132,000 (about $36,000) in back pay and damages. Baradeia worked as a security guard at the Gush Etzion Industrial Park for nearly 16 years, from February 2007 until his dismissal in February 2023. He claimed he worked seven days a week with long shifts for a monthly salary of NIS 3,500 in cash, without social benefits, and was fired abruptly without notice or a hearing.
The company denied an employer-employee relationship, asserting Baradeia was employed through security firms and a subcontractor. They also claimed his presence was related to a 2009 break-in and intended to ensure "industrial quiet," a claim the court dismissed for lack of evidence. The court found the company failed to provide sufficient documentation to prove its contractual relationships with the security firms or how Baradeia was actually employed.
The court determined that company representatives were involved in his hiring, supervised his work, and that the company's security chief informed him of his dismissal. Consequently, the court concluded an employer-employee relationship existed and that Baradeia was wrongfully terminated without due process.
Baradeia was awarded NIS 20,000 for lack of a hearing and wrongful dismissal, and NIS 3,500 for lack of notice. The court did not fully accept his claims regarding work hours, classifying some time as standby rather than full work hours. His social benefits were calculated based on a NIS 3,500 monthly salary and a 66% employment rate. The total award includes NIS 56,000 in severance pay, NIS 11,762 for vacation pay, NIS 13,097 for convalescence pay, NIS 10,000 for failure to provide payslips, and NIS 17,701 in pension contributions, plus NIS 11,000 in legal costs and attorney fees.
The court also rejected the company's claim to offset NIS 210,000 for housing provided to Baradeia and his family, as the company did not prove the value of the accommodation or a prior agreement that it would be deducted from his salary. The ruling was issued in the absence of the parties, who have 30 days to appeal.
