High Court: Labor laws to apply to Palestinians in settlements - Haaretz

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Last update - 22:23 10/10/2007

High Court: Labor laws to apply to Palestinians in settlements

By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent

Israeli labor laws will now be applicable to Palestinians working in West Bank settlements, according to a precedent-setting ruling unanimously handed down on Wednesday by the High Court of Justice.

The High Court ruled on a petition submitted by Kav Laoved - Workers' Hotline, and two Palestinians working for Israeli employers in the West Bank.

The two Palestinian petitioners worked for the local council of Givat Ze'ev and various private companies, and demanded the rights extended to workers in Israel - including minimum wage, damages, compensation and various social benefits.

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"The question before us," wrote Justice Eliezer Rivlin, "has many comprehensive implications for all workers employed in Israeli communities in the [West Bank] territories, and its solution has an impact on the relationships between Israeli employers in the territories and both Israeli and Palestinian workers."

Before the petition was submitted to the High Court, the National Labor Court had ruled that the law applying to Palestinian workers is that which applies to Palestinians in the West Bank in general - not Israeli law. However, attorneys Alexander Spinard and Nava Pinchuk-Alexander of Kav Laoved maintained that employment contracts for Palestinians in Israeli settlements attest to the parties' intention to be governed by Israeli law.

"The territorial affiliation should lead to the conclusion that Jordanian law is the law governing Palestinian workers, since the location of the employment is in the territories," Rivlin wrote.

"But examining the territorial aspect does not suffice. In the absence of a clear agreement between both sides, we should aspire to such that equal and identical law be applied to all workers with no relevant difference between them, in that they hold jobs of equal worth," the ruling continued.

This position gained the support of the Histadrut labor federation, but was opposed by Attorney General Menachem Mazuz, who joined the case when it was already underway.

Justice Salim Joubran stressed the importance of equality in the ruling.

"The Labor Court's ruling implies that the only distinction between the Palestinian and Israeli workers is that the former are Palestinians, residents of the Palestinian Authority. This distinction on the basis of nationality is improper and tantamount to discrimination... applying a foreign law to Palestinian workers and the Israeli law to Israeli ones infringes on the Palestinians' basic rights and discriminates against them, although they all work together," he wrote

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1.	Hey Jews!!	16:53	\|	Danite	10/10/07

2.	I am really appalled	17:08	\|	Shlomo from Tel-Aviv	10/10/07

3.	The laborer and the stranger	17:38	\|	David	10/10/07

4.	l`Danite shalom	17:43	\|	Margie in Tel Aviv	10/10/07

5.	Now all what about those construction workers?	18:15	\|	Ilan	10/10/07

6.	a just decision	18:27	\|	rose	10/10/07

7.	To Shlomo in Tel Aviv	18:27	\|	Freddy	10/10/07

8.	Good. Now there will be more reason to hire non Jews ....	18:59	\|	Jew	10/10/07

9.	To Danite	19:17	\|	Otto Rand	10/10/07

10.	Long overdue equality in labor laws	19:45	\|	Esther	10/10/07

11.	About time too	20:21	\|	Dafna	10/10/07

12.	what a day	21:47	\|	NR	10/10/07

13.	Who needs a revolution?	22:16	\|	BobUSA	10/10/07

14.	READ BETWEEN THE LINES	22:34	\|	Lavy	10/10/07

15.	Margie Hello	22:59	\|	Danite	10/10/07

16.	Otto Rand Hello	23:01	\|	Danite	10/10/07

17.	Palestinian Compromise?	23:06	\|	Jon	10/10/07

18.	Priced out of a job, if not by security, at least by money	23:21	\|	nina	10/10/07

19.	EQUALITY UNDER ISRAELI LAW	23:53	\|	Philip A. Robinson	10/10/07

20.	EQUALITY UNDER ISRAELI LAW	23:53	\|	Philip A. Robinson	10/10/07

21.	One state solution	00:08	\|	Neil	11/10/07

22.	What a Dissapointment	00:48	\|	dan	11/10/07

23.	Good day for israel - for once, the rule of law	01:28	\|	dana	11/10/07

24.	If they are already there working, why not let them live there?	02:43	\|	Pablo B	11/10/07

25.	Comment by Bob USA	05:54	\|	Victor USA	11/10/07

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