Israeli Municipality Worker Awarded 650,000 Shekels for Three Years of Coerced Sexual Relations with Senior Official

A former cleaning worker employed by an Israeli municipality has been awarded 650,000 shekels in compensation after a senior official exploited his authority to coerce her into sexual relations over three years. The ruling was upheld by the National Labor Court judges Ilan Sofer, Sigal Davidov-Motola, and Hani Ofek Gendler following appeals from both parties against a lower court decision.

The worker, aged 54, came from a difficult socio-economic background and had previously been a victim of gang rape. She began part-time cleaning work in 2012 at a municipal corporation. The senior official, about 50 years her senior and a department manager since the 1980s, hired her and signed her employment contract. She was dismissed in July 2021. In her lawsuit, she testified that the official arranged her job with the condition that she "would not disappoint him once or twice a week," leading to sexual encounters approximately once a month for three years. She emphasized that no physical force was used but that she had to "pay with her body" for his help and protection at work.

The official, now 78 and retired for about a decade, claimed the relationship began at her initiative and lasted only a few months in 2012, with only a few sexual encounters before he ended it. The Regional Labor Court accepted the worker’s version, recognizing the existence of a power imbalance and ordering the official to pay 600,000 shekels plus 30,000 shekels in legal costs. The court found he exploited her vulnerability and reduced her to a tool for his gratification. The claim against the municipality was initially rejected.

On appeal, the National Labor Court rejected the official’s appeal, affirming the clear power imbalance and ruling the sexual relations were quid pro quo for employment and protection. The court accepted the worker’s claim that the encounters were frequent over three years but left the compensation amount unchanged. However, it overturned the rejection of the municipality’s liability, ruling that the local authority failed to prevent the abuse despite its role in hiring and overseeing the worker. The municipality was ordered to pay an additional 50,000 shekels.

In total, the worker will receive 650,000 shekels plus 32,500 shekels in legal expenses, amounting to 712,500 shekels. The case highlights the legal recognition of sexual harassment involving abuse of authority and employer responsibility in Israel.