Dear Friends,
As Passover is approaching, in such difficult days, and we reflect upon the meaning of freedom, let me share with you the wish that every worker in Israel can enjoy a dignified life, fair employment, and justice.
For more than six months now, workers in Israel have been facing a state of emergency, with their livelihoods often curtailed, and, in the absence of any clear policy addressing their burning needs, left in a state of anxiety about their economic security.
Social services in Israel started collapsing well before 7 October 2023, as unnecessary ministries, with budgets of billions of shekels, repeatedly operated funding cuts to vital welfare, education, and health services. As a result, activists and NGOs have remained often alone in protecting the welfare of vulnerable populations. Since 7 October, however, the situation has substantially worsened, with KLO’s staff and volunteers facing and unprecedented wave of workers' rights violations under the auspices of the state of emergency.
Just before the holiday begins, let me hope and wish that the freedom we all long for, can be achieved soon and enjoyed by everyone. That contract workers will be employed directly, that older workers will be able to retire and not have to work to pay for food and medicine, that workers who have been evicted from their homes and workplaces will soon be able to celebrate at home, that Israeli and Palestinian workers will return to earning a dignified living and will be able to celebrate holidays with their families.
May we tighten our connection to each other and promote equality wherever we turn.
Yours, in solidarity,
Adv. Ohad Amar, Executive Director