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Last update - 22:01 30/03/2009
40 Arabs laid off as Israel Rail saves posts for army veterans
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Israeli Arabs, Israel Railway 

At least 40 Arab Israel Railways workers received pink slips on Sunday, effective the beginning of April. They are losing their jobs after Israel Railways changed its employment terms, and said it would employ only army veterans in the positions these workers held.

The workers serve as lookouts at level crossings, to prevent collisions between trains and vehicles. The job does not involve bearing arms.

The workers are employed by a human resources company, and some have been on the job for three years.
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Abdel Karim Kadi, 28, from Kalansua, told Haaretz on Sunday: "We work with safety, not security. We prevent accidents and we do it for low pay. Most of the workers are Arabs, and now even an Arab who has done national service isn't good enough for them. We could be police officers or pharmacists, but not train monitors?"

The workers earn NIS 24 an hour, slightly above minimum wage. Since the story broke, they have allegedly been threatened not to speak to the media.

Kadi says about half the monitors are Jewish, and those who did not serve in the army will be fired as well.

Israel Railways, a government company obligated to transparency in its hiring practices, said on Sunday: "Israel Railways views as significant the hiring of veterans and providing opportunities for these young people. Israel Railways is also reserving some 25 positions for minorities who have not necessarily served in the army."

The human resources company employing the workers, Hashmira, said it had no choice but to meet the conditions of Israel Railways, and said it would do everything possible to find other jobs for workers who do not meet the new criteria.
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  1.   everywhere you turn racism is out of control 05:00  |  David 30/03/09
  2.   Well 05:17  |  Daniel 30/03/09
  3.   I don`t like this 05:17  |  Conroy 30/03/09
  4.   Army vets only 05:34  |  kenneth widmerpool 30/03/09
  5.   Religious Nepotism - A World`s First! 05:55  |  Monitor 30/03/09
  6.   its a reasonable & non discriminatory policy 05:56  |  zionist forever 30/03/09
  7.   institutionalized racism 06:18  |  Ilya 30/03/09
  8.   Redirect them into healthcare jobs 06:45  |  5th generation 30/03/09
  9.   Being Arab has nothing to do with it 06:50  |  Josh 30/03/09
  10.   Other than Arabs, who are the "minorities"? 07:01  |  gil62 30/03/09
  11.   Cristal clear racism! 07:43  |  Niva dos santos 30/03/09
  12.   #2 Simply untrue, zf 07:45  |  Johnboy 30/03/09
  13.   haaretz, move this story 07:46  |  melissa 30/03/09
  14.   #3 Ilya, how the trick works 07:57  |  Johnboy 30/03/09
  15.   Sometimes it`s a littler harder to be a zionist. 08:49  |  Pioneer 30/03/09
  16.   To zionist forever #2 `it`s a...non-discriminatory policy` 09:07  |  Colin Wright 30/03/09
  17.   #3 09:25  |  Yonatan 30/03/09
  18.   Misleading caption AGAIN 09:25  |  x-ray 30/03/09
  19.   This is why Arabs should serve in the army: for equality 09:37  |  Realist 30/03/09
  20.   #2 zionist forever: please explain... 09:40  |  JustMe 30/03/09
  21.   DELETED 09:42  |  Ari ben Yisrael 30/03/09
  22.   HAARETZ 09:42  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  23.   Maybe we should check the 11:03  |  Charlotte Hawkins 30/03/09
  24.   About Time 11:06  |  Steve 30/03/09
  25.   2 zionist forever 11:21  |  Ardi 30/03/09
  26.   #7 Yes, your analogy is off, Colin Wright 11:28  |  Johnboy 30/03/09
  27.   #9 Misleading argument AGAIN, x-ray 11:44  |  Johnboy 30/03/09
  28.   Realist #10... but are they readily accepted into the army...? 11:44  |  Esther 30/03/09
  29.   # 10 realist 11:47  |  Axel 30/03/09
  30.   Clarification 11:58  |  Israeli citizen 30/03/09
  31.   MONITOR.JEWISH monitors ALSO lose jobs! Religious WHAT?? 12:25  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  32.   After World War 12:29  |  Jackie 30/03/09
  33.   UnDemocratic and UnJewish 12:45  |  Jay A Friedman 30/03/09
  34.   #19 Israeli Citizen 12:52  |  Chris Linthwaite 30/03/09
  35.   what about those exempt from military service??? 12:52  |  Allon 30/03/09
  36.   Its a tough life for anyone in Israel 12:54  |  Allon 30/03/09
  37.   If it 13:01  |  Paddydub 30/03/09
  38.   Israel is probably the most racist state in the western world 13:31  |  Danny 30/03/09
  39.   Institutionalized Jingoism 13:33  |  Rod 30/03/09
  40.   JOHNBOY ignorant argument.25 places reserved for NON army vets. 13:39  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  41.   Army service used as a tool to discriminate? Nothing new. 13:42  |  Ben Alofs 30/03/09
  42.   Johnboy obviously you don`t understand the situation 13:44  |  x-ray 30/03/09
  43.   militry service and employement 14:07  |  shmeise 30/03/09
  44.   AXEL How dare you call highly decorated Druze heroes,General a 14:08  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  45.   That day has not come yet, Pioneer, Ilya 14:08  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  46.   That day has not come yet, Pioneer, Ilya 14:08  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  47.   Great News 14:12  |  Hurra 30/03/09
  48.   Finally 14:14  |  fred 30/03/09
  49.   ALOFS So how do you spin Jews losing jobs as well? 14:15  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  50.   Arab boys lover Ben Alofs and his perfidious arguments 14:19  |  Absolute Sweden 30/03/09
  51.   ROD did you bother to read the article? 14:20  |  PETER SM 30/03/09
  52.   Sorry 14:39  |  Noria 30/03/09
  53.   With friends like these in Israel Railways? 14:42  |  Michael Casale 30/03/09
  54.   I guess it brings us back, Johnboy and Ben Alofs, 14:59  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  55.   I guess it brings us back, Johnboy and Ben Alofs, 14:59  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  56.   That day has not come yet, Pioneer, Ilya 15:00  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  57.   slanderous headline, haaretz 15:00  |  nina 30/03/09
  58.   Axel and Esther 17-18 15:16  |  Realist 30/03/09
  59.   So, What`s the big fuss about ?? ?? 15:34  |  Miguel Almela Perez 30/03/09
  60.   #2 zionist forever--the rest of the world is not busy stealing 15:36  |  Labhras 30/03/09
  61.   what`s next? 15:44  |  Welshman 30/03/09
  62.   This is how it starts 15:48  |  Can 30/03/09
  63.   anyway you look at it, it`s another slapdown of Arabs 15:53  |  newageblues 30/03/09
  64.   A non-issue:non-discriminatory 16:07  |  Christopher 30/03/09
  65.   right attitude Sceptic 16:10  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 30/03/09
  66.   Esther is it Israel`s fault that they aren`t loyal to the country 16:17  |  x-ray 30/03/09
  67.   discrimination 16:23  |  Frank 30/03/09
  68.   to Christopher from Boston, clarification please... 17:18  |  JustMe 30/03/09
  69.   Thank you 17:20  |  FFL 30/03/09
  70.   This is not such a minor thing Margie 17:34  |  Guido 30/03/09
  71.   Israeli jobs for Israeli workers! 17:54  |  Realist 30/03/09
  72.   # 29 margie 18:29  |  Axel 30/03/09
  73.   Sounds like a good idea 18:33  |  Z 30/03/09
  74.   to Christopher from Boston, clarification please... 18:45  |  JustMe 30/03/09
  75.   Just watch the apartheid apologist squirm and 18:47  |  The truth hurts 30/03/09
  76.   Charlotte Aisha Hawkins,in GB you can`t work 19:00  |  Absolute Sweden 30/03/09
  77.   #30 19:17  |  Anthony 30/03/09
  78.   Let`s have ALL government jobs should be reserved for veterans 19:23  |  Gee 30/03/09
  79.   to: Monitor, inre: Religious Nepotism 19:41  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  80.   7 19:54  |  zionist forever 30/03/09
  81.   Ilya 19:57  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  82.   Pioneer 20:03  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  83.   to #36 20:03  |  Dan 30/03/09
  84.   Colin Wright, always postulating the improbable 20:07  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  85.   JustMe just making propaganda 20:32  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  86.   Charlotte Hawkins, day and night, the difference... 20:36  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  87.   15 20:46  |  zionist forever 30/03/09
  88.   I wonder how many Jewish railwaymen were fired in Italy in 1938 20:56  |  Raffaele Ladu 30/03/09
  89.   Note the Jewish non-vets are being laid off too 21:23  |  Gee 30/03/09
  90.   National Service and Loyalty 21:24  |  Makevet 30/03/09
  91.   Democracy Israeli Style 21:45  |  Yaakov Sullivan 30/03/09
  92.   Israel racist? No, never. 21:46  |  peacelover 30/03/09
  93.   Danny, thanks to pal terrorists, Israel is defensive. 22:12  |  petra 30/03/09
  94.   Railroad jobs 22:02  |  Hilda 30/03/09
  95.   Wrong 22:29  |  baruch 30/03/09
  96.   Sorry to disappoint you, Axel, 22:32  |  Sceptic 30/03/09
  97.   This is Not Good - But Also Not Entirely Racist 22:53  |  Eli 30/03/09
  98.   Another DISHONEST Haaretz article. The company wants Army members 22:56  |  John Doe 30/03/09
  99.   #55 Akiva P 22:58  |  Charlotte Hawkins 30/03/09
  100.   JustMe just making propaganda (2nd attempt) 03:25  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  101.   to: Monitor, inre: Religious Nepotism, (2nd attempt) 23:10  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  102.   Ilya,(2nd attempt) 23:11  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  103.   pioneer,(2nd attempt) 23:13  |  Akiva P 30/03/09
  104.   The riots in Acre started it all 00:08  |  GPS 31/03/09
  105.   Now, now people 00:33  |  Mark Lincoln 31/03/09
  106.   Now, now people 00:33  |  Mark Lincoln 31/03/09
  107.   I wish that people would read the article 01:18  |  Gee 31/03/09
  108.   The truth hurts # 68 The Discrimination Is Not Based On Race 02:10  |  Jeff Northridge 31/03/09
  109.   Racism, or common sense? 02:30  |  Jon 31/03/09
  110.   Absolutely Realistic..REALISTICALLY SPEAKING THE TRUTH. 02:34  |  Whiskey 31/03/09
  111.   #7 If Arab citizens want to pledge loyality.. 02:36  |  John Allen 31/03/09
  112.   HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH RACE. 02:53  |  AARON 31/03/09
  113.   Ben Alofs... 02:56  |  Aaron 31/03/09
  114.   #35 Pointing out another trick, Allon 04:09  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  115.   The facts are that most of the people loosing jobs are Jews 04:18  |  Gee 31/03/09
  116.   THE TRUTHE hurts they were NOT fired because they were Arabs.Jews 04:25  |  PETER SM 31/03/09
  117.   Same Policy As New York City 04:52  |  Joseph 31/03/09
  118.   M.LINCOLN Hamas charter the Pal Mein Kampf reached Nurenberg laws 05:44  |  PETER SM 31/03/09
  119.   This subject title is misleading... 07:59  |  Barry 31/03/09
  120.   Joseph 08:46  |  Jake 1948 31/03/09
  121.   #40 Explaining things to an apologist like PETER SM 13:27  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  122.   JOHNBOY creating your own facts explains nothing 14:05  |  PETER SM 31/03/09
  123.   #80 Pardon me, Gee? 14:12  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  124.   #42 x-ray tries it on 14:54  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  125.   Pointing out - yet again - the two tricks in this article 15:10  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  126.   #81 Indeed, truth hurts, PETER SM 15:20  |  Johnboy 31/03/09
  127.   Hey #113 Jake 1948 ?Funny moniker,BUT! 18:40  |  Benny 31/03/09
  128.   #98 Come,come now Mark Lincoln..You are being very.. 18:51  |  Whiskey 31/03/09
  129.   What an injustice.... 19:16  |  Dutch 31/03/09
  130.   #2 Daniel..You took the words out of my mouth.WHY? 20:18  |  Whiskey 31/03/09
  131.   johnboy, you`re lying 21:37  |  nina 31/03/09
  132.   johnboy, the part of the article you missed 21:39  |  nina 31/03/09
  133.   peter sm 49 22:21  |  potobac 31/03/09
  134.   JOHNBOY As long as Jews dont get the jobs whats your problem? 22:42  |  PETER SM 31/03/09
  135.   JOHNBOY Whats your problem as long as Jews do not get the jobs 23:34  |  PETER SM 31/03/09
  136.   POTOBAC wait, condemn if appropriate not the other way around 00:05  |  PETER SM 01/04/09
  137.   peter sm 136 18:57  |  potobac 01/04/09
  138.   #131 nina says....... 05:22  |  Johnboy 02/04/09
  139.   #132 nina also says..... 05:25  |  Johnboy 02/04/09
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