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JERUSALEM — Many educators across Israel have announced plans to remain absent from classrooms on Monday, signaling that deep-seated frustration within the teaching sector remains unresolved despite a tentative deal reached between the Finance Ministry and the Teachers’ Union.
The ongoing protest comes in response to a controversial budget cut imposed on all public sector employees, including educators. While the government has revised its proposal, scaling back the planned reduction in salaries from 3.307% to 0.95% through the end of 2025, the compromise has done little to quell widespread discontent among teachers.
Under the proposed framework, which has yet to be formalized, educators would also receive two additional vacation days on Lag Ba’omer over the next two years. Moreover, a differential mechanism would be applied to ensure that not all teachers are impacted equally by the cut. However, the Teachers’ Union and many educators remain skeptical about whether these measures go far enough.
“The dedicated and principled education staff were the first to shoulder the burden in times of crisis—and now justice is being done with them,” said Yaffa Ben-David, Secretary-General of the Teachers’ Union. “But the reality is that this legislation has already harmed thousands of our colleagues.”
Initially, the protest was limited to delayed school openings, but some educators escalated their response by not reporting to work at all. The movement has garnered high-level political backing, including from Education Minister Yoav Kisch.
“The teachers’ and kindergarten teachers’ struggle is entirely justified,” Kisch said. “The Finance Ministry officials are out of touch. It is unacceptable that those whose work is sacred should be discriminated against compared to other public sector employees in Israel.”
Teachers interviewed on the ground described a climate of frustration, burnout, and disillusionment. “A 3.5% cut to a teacher’s net salary is a painful blow, especially given that our pay is already among the lowest in the public sector,” said one primary school educator.
Another teacher highlighted the compounding crisis of classroom staffing shortages, exacerbated by low wages and an aging workforce.
“We are all working harder because of this shortage, and when you open your paycheck and see NIS 300 or NIS 500 less, it’s demoralizing,” the teacher said. “It’s about more than money—it’s a blow to our dignity and to the already eroded status of teachers.”
Criticism was also directed at Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who has maintained that the cuts are equitable across the public sector. “To lump us together with high earners and then claim we’re not carrying our share of the burden only adds insult to injury,” one high school teacher commented.
With no clear resolution in sight and formal approval of the revised framework still pending, the central question remains: will these government concessions be enough to end the unrest—or are Israel’s educators preparing for a prolonged battle over pay, dignity, and respect?
Meanwhile, classrooms across the country face not only a shortage of teachers but increasing uncertainty about the future of public education in Israel.