Hundreds of schools, kindergartens stay shut as teachers continue unofficial strike
Tel Aviv and Sharon regions said hardest hit as staff call in sick for third day; Education Ministry orders regional administrators to summon organizers for a hearing
Hundreds of schools and kindergartens remained closed on Tuesday as teaching staff called in sick to continue protest action over surprise salary cuts, despite an agreement that had been reached between the Finance Ministry and the Israel Teachers Union.
It was the third consecutive day that staff had forced closures by reporting sick.
Many teachers are unhappy with union leader Yaffa Ben David’s concessions in the negotiations and are continuing to strike even after union declared strike action over at the beginning of the week.
The majority of closed educational institutions were in the center of the country, according to Hebrew media reports, and in particular in the Tel Aviv and Sharon regions.
Some estimates put the number at 400 schools and preschools that did not open.
In Tel Aviv, 100 educational institutes remained closed, and in Kiryat Ono, all sites did not open, Channel 13 reported. It said most educational sites were closed in Kfar Saba, Hod Hasharon, Netanya, Hadera, Rosh Ha’ayin, and Rehovot.
Disruptions are also spreading to the special education system, which previously had not been involved in the action, the Ynet outlet reported.
Some municipalities have started to offer activities in community centers, albeit with parental supervision required, reports said.
The Education Ministry instructed district administrators to summon those “inciting teachers to illegal activity” for a hearing. The ministry said it will dock the pay of teachers found to be striking under the guise of being sick.
According to the report, the ministry also warned that “political figures” have joined the protests, making “false promises” that the wage agreement can be changed and that protesting teachers are protected by claiming they are sick.
A protest group of teachers has demanded a meeting with Ben David, Channel 13 said.
The group claimed in a statement that the agreement between the teachers’ union and the Finance Ministry had not yet been formally signed and urged that “hundreds and thousands” of schools and kindergartens should stay closed.
“Pressure on the government works,” it said.
The group also claimed that teachers have received “crazy threats to be silent” but vowed to be undeterred.
Initial estimates by the Education Ministry suggested 17,000-20,000 teachers — around 10 percent of the workforce — listed themselves as sick on Monday, though it is unclear how many schools remained closed nationwide, the Kan public broadcaster reported at the time.
An official strike began Sunday morning but ended at 10 a.m. following a Labor Court hearing that instructed the relevant parties to continue negotiations. However, some teachers had already called in sick the night before and did not show up at all, with many schools opting to remain closed for the entire day. According to reports, some 25,000 teachers joined Sunday’s action.
The Teachers Union said later Sunday that the agreement it reached with the Treasury would set the pay cut at 0.95% instead of the originally set 3.3%, and it would only be in effect from May to the end of December 2025, hailing the “significant achievements.”
The gap in the cuts would be offset by other reductions in salary raises, promotions, and school benefits, and teachers would get extra vacation days, Hebrew media reported.
Citing their already low salaries, teachers say that they want the pay cut canceled entirely.
Channel 12 reported that the salary cut does not apply to teachers in ultra-Orthodox schools.
The Times of Israel Community.