Rights of Public Sector Workers - שי קרבצקי

According to current estimates, about half of all employed persons in the public sector work in the public sector.

We are talking about everyone who works for the State Authority, including civil servants, local authorities, employees of government companies, and teaching staff. These employees are entitled to preferential employment rights and conditions with respect to the private sector, with the conditions usually met in accordance with professional rankings and years ofseniority, achieved over the years under collective agreements.

Examples of preferred workers rights in the public sector

The unique rights of public sector workers may be expressed, inter alia, in the following areas:

Convalescence pay – from the first year of work, public sector workers are entitled to 7 to 9 days of recovery. This is in contrast to 5 days in the private sector, with the rate for each recovery day also higher than in the private sector.
Annual leave – starting in the first year of work, a public sector worker is entitled to receive at least 16 vacation days per year, compared to 10 vacation days in the private sector.
Collective Insurance – the insurances are offered to public sector workers under mitigating conditions, with comprehensive premiums and much cheaper costs than they are offered to private sector workers.
Greater employment stability – public sector workers enjoy greater job stability than those working in the private sector, and it is no wonder – the state is considered their “employer”, so everything related to wage conditions, contracts between the parties, and a protected and anchored labor relationship within the framework of the existing collective agreements between the government and the large stablelabor organizations representing the workers.
The effect of workplace elderlyness on workers’ rights – as a result of the improved working conditions enjoyed by public sector workers, the veteranness of this sector has a greater impact and significance, because this veteran gives the public sector worker many rights enshrined in unique agreements for this sector.
Collective insurance for the welfare of every employee in the sector – unlike employees in the private sector, employees and civil servants do not have to deal with conducting a comprehensive market survey between the insurance companies in order to receive the best quotes for personal, family, property insurance and even carinsurance. These insurance premiums are significantly cheaper and the coverages in policies are more comprehensive.

Reason for differences in employment conditions between the public and private sectors

According to the law in Israel, basic workers rights refer to all the workers in the market. The private and public sector as one.

These rights specify, among other things, the terms of employment and dismissal, as well as the minimum wage, pensions, provident funds, insurance, vacation days, convalescence benefits and sickness benefits. At the same time, public sector workers are, in many cases, given preferential terms of employment that are much higher than the minimum requirements set by law. This is mainly because many of the public sector workers are part of unions, organizations and in various workers ‘committees, which have, over the years, ensured the formation of collective labor agreements that bind the workers’ employers under these improved conditions.