Posted on 10/23/2003 3:15:09 PM PDT by anotherview
Sapir Peretz 23 Oct 03 15:16
This morning's meeting between Minister of Finance Benjamin Netanyahu and Histadrut chairman MK Amir Perez at Kfar Hamaccabi ended without results. The Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel) decision to launch a general strike as of November 3 stands.
After the meeting, Netanyahu told the media that it was the government job to decide what to do, but it was prepared to negotiate over how to do it. "As for what to do, we did very important things, such as reducing and streamlining government agencies and saving the pension funds. As for how to preserve the workers' future, on this subject we want, and we call for, a dialogue."
Netanyahu added that he had asked Histadrut leaders to pursue the negotiation and meet again tomorrow to reach an agreement. "If, despite all our attempts at negotiations, the game is fixed regardless of any of our proposals, and the Histadrut launches a mega-strike that abuses the country's citizenry, that's absolutely unacceptable. The government has all the tools to defend the people."
Netanyahu said it was impossible to demand that the government violate the country's laws. He referred to Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein's letter delivered to Perez at the start of today's meeting. "The notion that the state's laws will not be upheld is unacceptable. We want to defend the workers and citizenry, and we have all the legal means to do so," he said.
Netanyahu said he could not understand the Histadrut leaders' demands, which was why he summoned them to today's meeting. "I wanted to clarify the precise reasons for the strike, and concrete subjects gradually emerged."
The Ministry of Finance and Histadrut are due to meet again tomorrow. Netanyahu said, "I won't spare any effort to reach agreements that serve the country."
At the end of the meeting, Perez said nothing had changed. "We still have no confidence in the Ministry of Finance and the Minister of Finance. We told the ministry that damage to the workers and their pensions could not continue and we wouldn’t consent to it. That's why we're ready to negotiate. The meetings will continue tomorrow and the coming days in the hope of reaching understandings."
Perez added that the strike threat still stood because the government had not yet changed its decisions. "We'll continue preparing for the general strike, and the labor sanctions and union actions will continue," he said.
Perez said that each party made its position clear to the other at the meeting.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on October 23, 2003
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