Israel's Workers' Union announces widespread strike

The Histadrut Labor Federation, Israel’s primary worker’s union, announced on Monday morning that it would coordinate a far-reaching labor strike in order to prevent the government's judicial overhaul from being enacted. The Histadrut will be joined by the nation’s health care providers, according to the Medical Association, Report informs via The Jerusalem Post.

The announcement came the morning after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who had called for a halt to the legal reform legislation. Netanyahu’s decision sparked massive unrest among the Israeli populace, who took to the streets in historic numbers in order to protest the seemingly dictatorial move.

During a press conference, Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar David announced the strike, stating "I call on the Prime Minister - stop the legislation before it's too late."

“It is impossible to polarize this nation anymore," he said. "We must return to sanity… We see, and do not believe, where we have come to. Where are we leading our beloved State of Israel, to the abyss?! So before we go to the abyss, today all of us will stop our descent!"

”I didn't want us to come to this confrontation, I tried as much as I could to avoid a strike and shutdown, but it is impossible to stay in the face of this polarization that is tearing Israeli society apart from the inside. Today we are facing historic moments and a historic strike in which the employers and workers in the State of Israel join hands together, closing the State of Israel,” he continued.

In the meantime, the Medical Association announced that it would also shut down the health care system and announced "a full strike in the health care system until the announcement of a clear and serious course of negotiations, on the way to broad agreements. We will not be satisfied with stopping the legislation without more substantial content that will ensure the protection of patients' rights."

The strike will include all public hospitals and all community clinics. The Medical Association will operate an Exceptions Committee as usual and will enable life-saving treatments and services. The strike will stop as soon as a clear and agreed-upon outline for negotiations is formulated that will ensure, among other things, a stable ground for maintaining the rights of patients in the health system.