Jewish, Palestinian Daycare Workers Unite vs. Israeli Bosses

JERUSALEM, JULY 21 — Over 700 striking daycare workers — who have recently unionized in the “Workers’ Power” union federation — demonstrated in front of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The workers, Jewish and Palestinian women from all parts of Israel/Palestine, fought for workers’ control over regulations, a living wage and normal working conditions.

The “family” daycare system, first created in the 1980’s, was an attempt by the Israeli government to provide subsidized daycare facilities for children up to the age of 3, using small groups hosted at the workers’ homes rather than in an ordinary kindergarten. This service is especially valuable for impoverished families where both parents work but cannot pay the steep prices of private daycare.

However, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, which operates this system, has essentially privatized it, transferring its funds to the hands of local operators instead of paying the workers directly. The Ministry, as well as the local operators, have found a way to super-exploit these daycare workers: instead of being employed directly by either the Ministry or the operators, and thus entitled to a full wage and benefits, they are technically treated as “freelance contractors” and paid a flat monthly sum.

Capitalist Sexist Exploitation

These women work up to 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, yet earn less than 4,000 NIS (about $1,000) a month! And even that low wage is subject to payment delays. Additionally, these workers have to pay their operational costs out of their own pockets, and are constantly harassed by new regulations by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, regulations that often require them to spend more of their meager income on various safety features.

Faced with such brutal exploitation, the daycare workers decided to unionize in 2008 as part of the “Workers’ Power” union federation. Today, after two years of organizing, the union includes approximately 1,000 out of the 2,400 “family” daycare workers in Israel/Palestine. The workers, both Jewish and Palestinian women, are fighting for direct employment by the Ministry rather than the exploitative “freelancer” scam, for a living wage and benefits, for the payment of operation costs by the Ministry, and for workers’ control over the various regulations.

The Ministry and the local bosses first tried to ignore the union, and then moved to more aggressive methods against it, including the delaying of pay and the firing of several workers. Additionally, in the town of Elad, some women who were religious Jews were threatened with excommunication unless they leave the union; this has led several workers to withdraw from the union. This is a classic example of the role of religion as one of the bosses’ weapons against the working class.

Faced with these repressive steps, workers are fighting back nonetheless, demonstrating and striking against the bosses, and are trying to expand their union.

However, even if this reform struggle is won by the workers, the capitalist Israeli government will undoubtedly try to erode its achievements and rob the workers once again. Only a workers’ communist revolution and the seizure of state power by the working class will ensure good working conditions for all workers as well as free, high-quality daycare and education for all children. PLP is spreading our ideas among these workers, as well as building a base for our Party.