ISRAEL Law and Practice Contributed by: Tal Keret, Shira Lahat, Neta Goshen Brami, Shira Cohen-Mazor and Shirly Mahlab Hefetz, Arnon, Tadmor-Levy
• it must have a valid and enforceable constitution or articles of association; • membership must be voluntary; and • one of its primary objectives must be to regulate terms of employment through CBAs. For a union to attain the status of a “representative union” at a particular workplace, at least one-third of the employees must be registered members of the union. In cases where multiple unions are competing for representation, the union with the largest number of members at that workplace will be recognised as the representative union. Israel is home to three principal general-purpose employee unions, the largest being the New General Federation of Labor (commonly known as the “New Histadrut”). In addition, there are several professional unions representing specific sectors such as educa - tion, medicine, and civil employees of the military. Approximately 25–30% of the Israeli workforce is unionised. At the enterprise level, unions typically establish a workplace committee comprised of employees. This committee acts as the union’s representative body within the organisation and serves as a liaison between employees and management. Together, the union and the workplace committee engage in nego - tiations with the employer on matters concerning employment terms and workplace conditions. In the event of a labour dispute, and unless prohibited by an applicable CBA, a union is entitled to declare a labour dispute. Following a 14-day cooling-off period, the union may initiate a strike or take other forms of industrial action. 6.2 Employee Representative Bodies Representative Bodies and Internal Representation Under Israeli labour law, only unions are recognised as the legitimate representative bodies of employ - ees, and they act through the workplace commit - tees. These committees do not possess independent authority to negotiate or execute CBAs without the involvement of the union.
An exception exists for so-called internal representa - tive bodies that function as independent employee representatives without affiliation to a general or pro - fessional union. However, Israeli labour courts gener - ally view such bodies with scepticism, often suspect - ing them to be employer-driven or lacking genuine independence. For such a body to be recognised as a valid representative entity, it must not only meet the same requirements as a traditional union but also prove its authenticity as an employee-driven organi - sation. 6.3 Collective Bargaining Agreements The regulation of CBAs in Israel is governed by the Collective Agreements Law, 1957. Under this statute, only an established labour union may lawfully enter into a CBA on behalf of employees. There are two types of CBAs: • a special collective agreement, which is executed between a union and a specific employer; and • a general or sectoral collective agreement, which is executed between a union and an employers’ association representing multiple employers in a given industry or on a general matter such as travel expenses. Typical CBAs include several key components: • financial provisions, setting wages and other mon - etary benefits; • organisational provisions, outlining rules on work - ing hours, employment policies, protections against termination, seniority, and dispute resolu - tion mechanisms; • duration, usually specifying a term of three to five years; • industrial peace clauses, in which the union agrees to refrain from rising new demands, strikes or labour disputes on issues addressed in the agree - ment; and • dues collection, which authorises the employer to deduct union dues and other organisational pay - ments (including committee dues) from employees’ salaries ‒ applying both to union members and, in certain cases, to non-members.
298 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook