Teachers to shutter some schools over ongoing salary spat

High school teachers in the coastal cities of Herzliya, Ra’anana, Kfar Saba and Netanya will strike Monday as the teachers union continues its dispute with the treasury over better wages, the union announced.

The teachers’ union representing high school staff wants an immediate monthly gross wage increase for starting teachers, from NIS 6,400 ($1,820) to NIS 8,000 ($2,275), along with a comparable raise for teachers with up to seven years’ experience. In addition, the union is demanding that teachers on the job for eight years or more receive an extra NIS 600 ($170) a month.

Following a national strike, the union has been shuttering schools in different cities as part of an ongoing countrywide protest program.

“The quality of our children’s education depends on the quality and status of the teachers,” Education Minister Naftali Bennett said on Twitter last month.

“The salaries of teachers starting today do not allow for a dignified existence and it is difficult to attract excellent people to teach,” he added. “Therefore, the goal I set is a salary of NIS 8,000 for a beginner teacher, and I am convinced that both the Finance Ministry and the [teachers’] organizations will join in.”