Israeli Teachers Denied Pay for 17-Hour Iran Conflict Workday

The Israeli Ministry of Finance has instructed that teachers not be paid for their workday on June 8, during a nearly 24-hour conflict with Iran earlier this month. The Ministry of Finance's payroll supervisor sent a letter demanding the Ministry of Education deduct teachers' salaries for that day, when the Education Minister had ordered schools closed, including remote learning. Officials estimate the pay cut will amount to several hundred shekels per teacher. The letter also stated that teachers who do not want their pay reduced can opt to take a day off at their own expense. Ran Erez, chairman of the Teachers' Union, condemned the move in a letter to government leaders, calling it an unlawful salary deduction made without coordination with teachers' organizations. This development comes amid other budgetary disputes, including delays in benefits for hundreds of associations and a government-promoted benefit for ultra-Orthodox kindergartens facing Finance Committee pressure.