Chapter One: Definitions

1. In this law –
“Foreign worker” – worker who is not a citizen of Israel or a resident of Israel.
“Manpower contractor” – as defined in the Employment of Employees by Manpower Contractors
Law 5756-1996 .
“Manpower agency” – one whose principal business or part thereof is job placement.
“Employer” – includes manpower contractor.
“The Committee” – the Knesset Labour and Social Affairs and Health Committee.
“The Minister” – the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs.

Chapter Two: Conditions for Employment Conditions for the Employment of a Foreign Worker

1A. An employer shall not employ a foreign worker unless he has complied with all the provisions of
sections 1B to 1E.
Medical certificate.
1B.
(a) The employer has received a certificate from a medical institution in a foreign country,
recognized for such purpose by the Minister of Health, certifying that the worker has undergone a
medical examination within the three months preceding his entry into Israel, and has been found
not to have contracted or be suffering from one of the illnesses enumerated in the Schedule
(hereinafter – medical certificate); where there is no such recognized medical institution in the
country from which the foreign worker came to Israel, a medical certificate); where there is no
such recognized medical institution in the country from which the foreign worker came to Israel, a
medical examination shall be conducted and a certificate issued, in that country or in another
country, by an Israeli medical institution which is recognized for such purpose by the Minister of
Health.
(b) The examination under subsection (a) shall be carried out by agreement with the health
authorities of the country in which it is carried out.
(c) The employer has attached to the visa and to the application for a working visitors permit for
the purposes of employment under the Entry into Israel Law 5712-1952 (hereinafter – the Entry
Law), for the worker in respect of whom the application was submitted, the medical certificate
that relates to him.
(d) The Minister of Health, in consultation with the Minister and with the Minister of the Interior,
may make regulations for the implementation of the provisions of this section, and including
those identity particulars that are to be included in the medical certificate.
Contract of employment.
1C.
(a) The employer has entered into a written employment contract with the foreign worker, in a
language understood by the foreign worker, and had provided the foreign worker with a copy
thereof.
(b) Such terms of employment as have been agreed between the parties shall be specified in the
contract subject to the provisions of any enactment, and also specifying all the following:
(1) the identity of the employer and of the foreign worker;
(2) job description;
(3) the foreign worker’s salary, the composition thereof, the manner of updating the same
including its constituents parts and dates of payment;
(4) a list of deductions from the salary;
(5) payment made by the employer and the employee for the employee’s social benefits’
(6) the date of commencement of the employment and the period thereof;
(7) the length of the foreign worker’s normal working day or week including his weekly rest
day;
(8) conditions concerning aid absences, including leaves, festival days and sickness days;
(9) the employer’s obligations under sections 1D and 1E and under section 1A, in so far as
they apply to him.
(c) Nothing by virtue of the provisions of this section shall derogate from the provisions of a
collective agreement or extension order within the meaning thereof in the Collective Agreements
Law, 5757-1957, or from the provisions of any enactment, that apply to the foreign worker and to
the employer.
(d) The Minister may make supplementary regulations for the purpose of this section and to
section 1F including prescribing those additional matters which must be written into the said
employment contract, and as to those terms that must not be included in the employment contract,
which if included, shall be null and void, and all in order to ensure fair conditions for the foreign
worker having regard to the provisions of any law, a collective agreement or an extension order as
provided in subsection (b).
Medical insurance.
1D.
(a) The employer shall arrange at his own expense, medical insurance, for the foreign worker
covering the whole of the period of his employment with him, which shall include such basket of
services as the Minister of Health shall prescribe for this purpose by order; and the Minister of
Health, with the agreement of the Minister of Finance may prescribe that such medical insurance
shall include health services in addition to those provided in the basket of services.
(b) Where a basket of services has been prescribed by the Minister of Health under subsection
(a), the employer’s obligation to arrange such medical insurance for the foreign worker as
prescribed by order, shall apply until the expiration of six months from the date of the publication
of such order.
(c) The employer may deduct from the foreign worker’s salary an amount that he has expended or
has actually undertaken to expend on insurance premiums as aforesaid, in an amount that shall not
exceed the amount prescribed by the Minister, whether in general terms or according to
categories.
(d) The provisions of this section shall apply for as long as the Minister of Health has not
otherwise prescribed special arrangements for foreign workers under section 56(a)(1)(d) of the
National Health Law, 5754-1994.
Suitable residential accommodation.
1E.
(a) The employer shall make available at his own expense for the use of the foreign worker,
suitable residential accommodation throughout the whole of the period of his employment with
him and until a date that shall not be for less than seven days after the end of such employment,
and where from the date of the end of such employment and until the end of the foreign worker’s
stay in Israel a period of less than seven days remains – then to date that shall not be less than the
number of days remaining.
(b) The employer may deduct from the foreign worker’s wages an amount by way of
reimbursement of such expenses as he has incurred or has actually undertaken to incur, for
residential accommodation as aforesaid, in an amount that shall not exceed the amount prescribed
by the Minister, whether in general terms or for categories of foreign workers.
(c)(1) The Minister, may exempt an employer from the obligation imposed upon him in
subsection (a) to workers employed by him in such specific assignments as he shall determine, or
whose wages exceed the amount that he has prescribed; an exemption under this subsection may
be granted in regulations in general, or in relation to a particular foreign worker;
(2) An employer who has not made suitable residential accommodation available for a foreign
worker due to an exemption that he has received pursuant to paragraph (1) shall make a
payment to the foreign worker for suitable residential accommodation of such amount as shall
be prescribed; an amount prescribed pursuant to this subsection shall be linked to the index as
the minister shall determine.
(d) The Minister may prescribe, in consultation with the Minister of Health, and the Minister of
Housing and Construction, binding criteria for suitable residential accommodation, including
conditions relating to safety and sanitation.
Retention of documents.
1F.
(a) A person who employs a foreign worker shall keep at the workplace at which the foreign
worker is employed, a copy of the employment contract with the foreign worker and a correct
Hebrew language translation of it, and such additional documents as the minister shall prescribe;
provided that the employer may keep the said documents at the place at which he conducts his
business provided that he gives written notification thereof to whoever the Minister prescribes;
such notification shall also contain the address at which the documents are being kept as
aforesaid.
(b) The Minister may prescribe categories of documents that the employer shall be obliged to
keep as proved in subsection (a).
Making regulations.
1G. Regulations under sections 1B to 1E shall be made with the approval of the committee.

Chapter Three: The Employer’s Obligations to the Authorities Guarantee

1H.
(a) The Minister, with the agreement of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of the Interior,
and with the approval of the committee, may prescribe an obligation that bank or other suitable
guarantees be furnished (hereinafter – guarantee), in favor of the State to secure the performance
of the employer’s obligations to the foreign worker, including the type, terms, amount, and form
thereof, and the date on which it is to be furnished, the forfeiture thereof, and provisions
concerning the use of monies from such forfeiture.
(b) The Minister, with the agreement of the Minister of Finance and the Minister of the Interior,
and with the approval of the committee, may prescribe that a guarantee furnished by the
employment of a foreign worker under another Law shall serve to secure the performance of his
obligations under this Law; in regulations made pursuant to this subsection an order of priority
may be prescribed on a forfeiture of such guarantees and all the foregoing in order to realize the
objectives for which they were provided.
(c) The guarantee shall be given by the employer, and may be given with the agreement of the
employer, by one of the following, who are recognized for such purpose by the Minister and on
such conditions as shall be prescribed in the circumstances of the case –
(1) An employers organization of which the employer is a member;
(2) A body corporate of which the employer is a member of shareholder;
(3) A body corporate the members of which are Moshavim or Kibbutzim the employer being
a member thereof.
Reporting obligation.
1I.
(a) The employer of a foreign worker shall deliver a monthly report, or at such longer intervals as
the Minister shall prescribe, to the payments section as defined in section 61A of the Employment
Service Law, 5759-1959 (hereinafter referred to as – the payments section).
(b) In the said report details shall be provided of the foreign workers wages, payments made by the
employer for social benefits as well as deduction made from wages including deductions made for
social benefits, deductions made under sections 1D and 1E and the amount that have been paid or
that have been deducted from the wages under section 1K.
(c) The report referred in subsection (a) shall be prepared on such form as is prescribed by the
Minister; the Minister may also prescribe the date and the manner in which the report is to be
submitted as aforesaid, additional details that are to be included in it and the documents that are to
be enclosed with and attached to it, including a copy of an itemized breakdown of the wage and of
the amounts that have been deducted from the wage that has been given to the employee under the
provisions of the Wage Protection Law, 5758-1958 (hereinafter referred to as – wage particulars).
(d) An employer of a foreign worker shall deliver to the payments section, at such intervals as shall
be prescribed by the Minister, an accountant’s certificate verifying the reports that have been
submitted to the payments section under this section; the Minister may prescribe, in relation to
categories of employers, that such reports shall be verified in another way.
(e) A person who is appointed to be a supervisor for the purpose of a Law that the Minister is
charged with implementing, may, for the purpose of the performance of his function, under this
Law, demand and receive from the payments section, reports, wage particulars and any other
document or information that the foreign worker’s employer has furnished to the payments section
in accordance with the provisions of this section, and to use the aforesaid material in the
performance of his said function.
Fees.
1J.
(a) The Minister of the Interior, by agreement with the Minister of Finance, and with the approval
of the Committee, shall make regulations and conditions concerning –
(1) An obligation on the part of the employer to pay a compulsory annual fee of an amount not
exceeding NIS 3,000, which shall be paid for each foreign workers visa granted under the
Entry Law (hereinafter referred to as – annual fee);
(2) An obligation on the part of the employer to pay a compulsory application fee of an
amount not exceeding NIS 350 (hereinafter referred to as – application fee) which shall be paid
on each application for a visa and working visitors permit for the purpose of employment in
Israel under the Entry Law (hereinafter referred to as – foreign worker’s visa);
(3) An exemption or a reduced amount of an application fee or annual fee for a nursing
support foreign worker who is employed by an individual, on such terms as shall be
prescribed;
(4) An exemption or a reduced amount of an application fee or annual fee for foreign workers
in such categories of employment or in such other branches of employment as shall be
prescribed and in relation to foreign workers in such particular positions as prescribed;
(5) Partial payment of an annual fee concerning a foreign workers visa that is granted for a
period of up to 6 months;
(6) Partial refund of an annual fee in a case in which the foreign worker has left Israel before
the expiry date prescribed in the visa for which the fee has been paid, all on such terms and in
such circumstances as shall be prescribed as aforesaid.
(b) The person making the application to employ the foreign worker shall pay the annual fee and
the application fee as provided in subsection (a).
(c) The Minister of the Interior, with the agreement of the Minister and the Minister of Finance,
and with the approval of the committee may, by order, reduce the amounts specified in subsection
(a).
(d) The amount of the fees prescribed in this section shall be updated on 1st January of every year,
according to the rate of the rise in the consumer prices index published on 15th October of that
year as compared with the index published on 15th October of the preceding year; The Minister of
the Interior shall publish notice of the amounts of the fees, as updated in accordance with this
subsection.

Chapter Four: Foreign Workers Fund
Deposit in the fund.
1K.
(a) The Minister, with the agreement of the Minister of Finance, and with the approval of the
committee, may establish a fund for foreign workers (hereinafter referred to as – the fund) and
prescribe rules and regulations in regard to the compulsory obligation of the employer of a foreign
worker to make payment to the fund of such amount as shall be prescribed which shall not exceed
NIS 700 per month, for each foreign worker who is employed by him in that same month
(hereinafter referred to as – the deposit).
(b) The Minister of Finance, with the agreement of the Minister, shall make rules concerning the
operation and management of the fund, a-including the categories of assets in which the fund shall
be authorized to invest the monies received in the fund as aforesaid, and the fees and commissions
that are to be paid to the fund.
(c) An employer shall be entitled to deduct from a foreign worker’s wages part of the amount of
the deposit that he has paid, such amount shall not exceed the amount prescribed by the Minister
as aforesaid in subsection (a) and shall not exceed one third of the amount of the deposit.
(d) A foreign worker shall be entitled to receive the monies that have been paid to the fund for
him together with the profits accrued thereon, subject to deduction of an administration fee and to
lawful deduction of tax, a the expiration of three months
after his departure from Israel, except for a temporary exit from Israel and all in accordance
with such rules and regulations that the Minister shall have prescribed as provided in subsection
(a).
(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of the Income Tax Ordinance –
(1) Amount deposited in the fund in accordance with this Chapter shall be deemed to be
income in the foreign worker’s hands on the day that he receives them;
(2) Monies that have accumulated in the fund for the foreign worker shall attract income tax
thereon at a flat rate of 15% without any right of exemption, deduction or set-off whatsoever.
(f) (1) Where in a Collective Agreement or in an Extension Order as they are defined in the
Collective Agreements Law, 5717-1957, provisions have been made concerning social
benefits payments that the employer or the foreign worker is to make to a pension fund, or
other savings plan, a provident fund or for severance pay compensation, the employer shall
transfer to the fund alone such social benefit payment as he is obliged to make and shall also
deduct from the foreign worker’s wages the payment for which the foreign worker is liable and
shall transfer it to the fund alone, and all in such amounts as have been prescribed in the
aforesaid Collective Agreement or Extension Order, and the provisions of the Collective
Agreement or Extension Order shall not apply for such purpose.
(2) Where the total amount payable under paragraph (1) is less than the amount prescribed
under subsection (a), the employer shall transfer to the fund, the difference between the two
amounts, including deductions made from the foreign worker’s wages under subsection (c),
provided that the total of all the deductions made under paragraph (a) and under subsection (c)
shall not exceed the amount prescribed under the said subsection.
(3) The provisions of the Severance Pay Law, 5723-1963 shall not apply to an employer who
has paid deposit monies in relation to a foreign worker, for the period in respect of which such
monies were deposited and up the level of the amount deposited.
(g) The Minister, with the agreement of the Minister of Finance and with the consent of the
committee, may make regulations with regard to –
(1) The terms and ways of transferring the deposit funds to the foreign worker in accordance
with subsection (d), including the deposit thereof in the foreign worker’s bank account outside
of Israel;
(2) The use of those monies that have not been withdrawn from the fund by the foreign
workers, for the purpose of the welfare of foreign workers in Israel as prescribed, within such
period as shall be prescribed as aforesaid and shall not be less, in relation to every foreign
worker, than two years from the expiration of the visa period granted to an in relation to the
foreign worker;
(3) Categories of those cases and conditions under which a foreign worker shall be entitled to
receive all or some of the deposit monies, even prior to the date provided in subsection (d) or
even in Israel;
(4) Exemption from payment of the deposit or reduced deposit payment in relation to a
nursing support foreign worker employed by an individual, and such categories of employees
as shall be prescribed as aforesaid; where an exemption has been granted or a reduced
payment has been prescribed, the employer shall not make a deduction from the foreign
worker’s wages under subsection (c) or shall make a deduction of the reduced amount in
proportion to the reduced payment as the case may be;
(5) The means and dates of payment of such monies by the employer to the fund and for the
deductions from the foreign worker, as provided in subsections (a), (c) and (f).
(h) The amount provided in subsection (a) shall be updated on the 1st January in each year by the
amount of the increase in the average wage as defined in section 1 of the National Insurance Law
[Consolidated Version] 5755-1995, as compared with the average wage as it was on the preceding
1st January; the Minister shall publish a notice in Reshumot as to the amount of the deposit as
updated pursuant to this subsection.

Chapter Five: Offenses, Penalties and Supervision
Unlawful Employment
2.
(a) Where an employer has –
(1) employed a foreign worker who is not entitled to work on Israel by virtue of the Entry into
Israel Law 5712-1952 and the regulations made thereunder; or
(2) employed a foreign worker in contravention of section 32 of the Employment Service Law
5719-1959
he shall be liable to six months imprisonment or to a fine of four times the amount of the fine
prescribed in section 61(a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737 – 1977, and to additional fine of four times the
amount of the fine prescribed in section 61 (c) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, per employee, for every
day that the offense continues.”
(b) A person who has done one of the following –
(1) Has employed a foreign worker, without having furnished a medical certificate as required
under the provisions of section 1B;
(2) Has employed a foreign worker without entering into a contract of employment with him in
accordance with the provisions of section 1G;
(3) Has employed a foreign worker without having arranged medical insurance for the foreign
worker in accordance with the provisions of section 1D or has deducted from such foreign
worker’s wages a sum that exceeds the amount prescribed in the regulations made pursuant to that
section;
(4) Has employed a foreign worker without having made available for his use suitable residential
accommodation in accordance with the provisions of section 1E or has deducted from such
foreign worker’s wages a sum that exceeds the amount prescribed in the regulations made
pursuant to that section;
(5) Has not in accordance with the provisions of section 1F, kept a copy of a contract of
employment or a translation of it into Hebrew or other documents, in a place as provided in that
section or has not given notice as provided in that section;
(6) Has not transferred to the payments section such payments report or other document on such
date and in such manner as is required under the provisions of section 1I;
(7) Has not furnished the foreign worker with itemized details of the wages that have been paid
and the amounts that have been deducted from such wages, under the provisions of section 24 of
the Wage protection Law, 5718-1958;
(8) Has employed a foreign worker without having deposited for him in the fund the full amount
of the deposit monies in accordance with the provisions of section 1K;
(9) Has made a deduction from the foreign worker’s wages in contravention of the provisions of
section 25 of the Wage Protection Law, 5718-1958;
He shall be liable to –
(a) In relation to offenses under paragraphs (5), (6) or (7) – double the amount of the fine prescribed in
section 61 (a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, and a further fine of four times the amount of the fine
prescribed in section 61 (c) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, per employee, for every day that the offense
continues.
(b) In relation to offenses under paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (8) or (9) – four times the amount of the
fine prescribed in section 61 (a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, and a further fine of four times the
amount of the fine prescribed in section 61 (c) of the penal Law 5737-1977, per employee, for every
day that the offense continues, provided that where an offense has been committed as provided in
subsections (a) or (b) in respect of a foreign worker employed within the framework of his business or
trade of the employer, he shall be liable to such fine as is provided in subsections (a) or (b), as the case
may be, or six months imprisonment;
(c) Where a contractor who has dealt, under a contract for services as the same is defined in the
Contract for Services Law, 5734-1974, that was made with an employer of a foreign worker, with the
arrangement of all or some of the matters referred to in sections 1B and 1E, and has not properly
arranged those matters as aforesaid in accordance with the provisions of the said sections, or has dealt
as aforesaid, the arrangement of the terms of employment of foreign workers, including the payment of
wages and ancillary payment, and has acted for such purpose in breach of the provisions of any
statutory enactment, – he shall be liable to imprisonment or to a fine as prescribed in this section or in
that statutory provision of which he is in breach, as the case may be, as if he had been the employer of
the foreign worker.”
Unlawful night lodging
2A
(a) Where an employer or a manpower contractor, has, whether or not for consideration –
(1) knowingly made a night lodging place available to an employee who has unlawfully entered
Israel or is unlawfully staying in Israel, or who works in Israel without a permit issued under the
Entry into Israel Law 5712-1952 (hereinafter referred to as – a lawful work permit), whether he
owns the place or it is in the possession of another person:
(2) brokered or has assisted in any other manner in obtaining a lodging place for a foreign worker,
as provided in paragraph (1):
he shall be liable to a fine as provided in section 61 (a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, and if the
offence is committed in respect of employing the person in his business or occupation who committed
the offence, then he shall be liable to the said fine or to six months imprisonment.
(a) In respect of an offence under subsection (a), where an employer or a manpower contractor has
committed one of the acts referred to in subsection (a), then the onus of proof shall be on him to show
that he examined whether the foreign employee holds documents pursuant to which he entered Israel
lawfully and is working there under a lawful work permit, or that – in the circumstances of the case at
the time that he committed one of the acts referred to in subsection(a0, he need not have known that the
foreign worker entered Israel unlawfully or is staying in Israel unlawfully or is working in Israel
without a lawful permit
Unlawful Agency
2.Where a manpower contractor has brokered the employment of a foreign worker whose
employment constitutes an offence under section 2, he shall be liable to double the fine provided in
section 61(a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977,or to six month imprisonment
Anti-nuclear biological and chemical weapons equipment (“A.B.C”)
(a) An employer shall not be granted a permit to employ a foreign worker under the Employment
Service Law 5719-1959 unless the employer has acquired at his own expense, civil defence A.B.C for
the employee, and has equipped him with the same, in accordance with a list prescribed by the Minister
of Defence
(b) The Minister of Defence may, with the agreement of the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs,
prescribe all the following:
(1) Payment that is to be made, for the A.B.C:
(2) The means of acquiring the A.B.C, of distributing the same to employees pursuant to
subsection (a) and the times of such distribution;
(3) The means of keeping A.B.C, the handling and treatment thereof and the conditions under
which they are to be returned:
(4) The times and circumstances under which the A.B.C is to be carried, worn installed or used in
any other way.
(c) An employer who contravenes the provisions of this section and the regulations made thereunder,
shall be liable to double the fine provided in section 61(a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977, or to six
months imprisonment.
Actual employer
4. Where an offence under section 2 has been committed by a manpower contractor, then whoever
actually employed the foreign worker shall also be guilty of such offence, unless he proves that the
offence was committed without his knowledge and that he took all reasonable steps to prevent it.
“Liability of an office holder.
5. (a) A holder of office must supervise and do all that is possible to prevent offenses being
committed under sections 2 to 4 by a body corporate or by any of its employees, any person who
breaches the aforesaid obligation – shall be liable to such fine as is prescribed in section 61 (a)(2) of
the Penal Law 5737-1977; for the purposes of this section, “a holder of office” – means an active
director, partner, other than a limited partner, or an officer of that body corporate, whose duty it is
on behalf of the body corporate to act in ensuring compliance with the obligations of such body
corporate in accordance with the aforesaid sections.
(b) Where an offense has been committed by a body corporate under section 2 to 4, the
presumption shall be that a holder of office has committed a breach of his duty as provided in this
section, unless he proves that he acted without criminal intent and without negligence on his part
and that he took all possible steps to prevent the commission of such an offense.
Protection of complainant.
5A. (a) An employer shall not do anything prejudicial to the wages of a foreign worker, his promotion
at work or to the terms of his employment, and shall not dismiss him from his employment by
reason of a complaint or claim that the foreign worker has made in good faith about a breach of
any one of the provisions of this Law or of the failure on the part of the employer to comply with
any of his obligations towards the worker, or by reason of the fact that he has given information
concerning the same, or by reason of the fact that he has in good faith assisted another worker in
connection with such a complaint or claim as aforesaid.
(b) A person who commits an offense under the provisions of subsection (a), – shall be liable to
double the amount of the fine prescribed in section 61 (a)(2) of the Penal Law 5737-1977.
Powers of inspection.
6. (a) For the purpose of supervision of the implementation of the provisions of this Law or the
regulations made pursuant thereto, the duly empowered state employee, within the meaning of that
term as defined in sections 73 or 74 of the Employment Services Law 5719-1959 (hereinafter
referred to as – the inspector) may –
(1) require from the employer, from a private employment service bureau, as defined in the
Employment Services Law, from any person who is acting on behalf of the employer, or from
any employee of the employer, information and documents concerning the implementation of
the provisions of this Law;
(2) to enter at any reasonable time any private employment service bureau or place where
persons are employed, or where he has reason to believe that persons are employed or is the
place of residence of a foreign worker, provided that entry to a place of residence as aforesaid is
for the purpose of checking compliance with the employer’s obligations under section 1E and
the foreign worker has consented thereto.
(b) Where a suspicion has arisen of the commission of an offense under the provisions of this Law,
the inspector may –
(1) investigate any person who in his opinion is concerned in the commission of such an
offense, or has or is likely to have information concerning the same;
(2) Seize any object or document connected with the commission of the said offense.
(c) In an investigation under subparagraph (b) (1) the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of the Criminal
Procedure Ordinance (evidence) shall apply, and the provisions of the Fourth Chapter of the
Criminal procedure Ordinance (Arrest and Search) [New Version] 5729-1969, shall apply to any
thing seized under subparagraph (b)(2).

Chapter Six: Miscellaneous Provisions
Mobility of foreign workers.
6A.
The Minister in consultation with the Minister of the Interior, may prescribe in regulations, rules,
conditions exceptions and reservations regarding a transfer of a worker between employers, including
provisions with regard to the settling of accounts between employers in respect of fees that have been
paid in accordance with section 1J in the case of such a transfer as aforesaid; such provisions
concerning settlement of accounts require the agreement of the Minister of Finance.
Obligation of consultation.
6B. Regulation under sections 1C, 1D, 1E, 1F, 1H, 1I, and 6A shall be made after consultations with
employees organizations within whose membership are the largest number of employees in Israel, and
with those employers’ organizations which in the opinion of the Minister have an interest in the matter.
Exceptions.
6C.
(a) Sections 1B and 1K and sections 6A and 6B shall not apply to a foreign worker to whom the
provisions of Chapter Six of the Law for the Implementation of the Agreement on the Gaza Strip
and Jericho Region (Economic Arrangements and Miscellaneous Provisions) (Legislative
Amendments) 5754-1994, applies.
(b) The Minister may, with the approval of the committee, make provisions concerning the
complete or partial inapplicability of sections 1A to 1K and of section 6B, to a foreign worker
who is employed in employment, in a profession or trade branch in respect of which he has made
provisions either in general terms or for
categories for a particular case, on such conditions that he has prescribed or directed as the case
may be, such provisions as aforesaid for the purpose of the inapplicability of section 1K shall be
made with the agreement of the Minister of Finance and for the purpose of section 1J – with the
agreement of the Minister of the Interior.
Amendment of Labour Courts Law
7. At the end of the Second Schedule to the Labour Courts Law 5729-1969 insert: “Foreign
Employees Prohibition of Unlawful Employment and Assurance of fair Conditions) Law, 5751-
1991
Implementation
8. The Minister is charged with the implementation of this Law and he make regulations in any matter
related to its implementation.
Commencement
9. This Law shall come into force on the 17th day of Iyar 5751 (1st May 1991)

Chapter One: Introductory Provisions

Interpretation.
1. In this Law –
“working hours” means the period during which an employee is available for employment
including short breaks allowed to an employee by agreement for rest and fresh air other than the
breaks provided in section 20;
“over-time hours” means working hours additional to –
(a) the limit prescribed for a working day in section 2 or a working day prescribed under the
provisions of section 4, or
(b) the limit prescribed for a working week in section 3, or a working week prescribed under the
provisions of section 4;
“night work” means work during a period of which not less than two hours are between 10:00 p.m.
and 06:00 a.m.;
“Inspector of Labour” means an inspector as defined in the Department of Labour Ordinance, 1943;
“Regional Inspector of Labour” means an Inspector of Labour appointed by the Minister of Labour
and Social Affairs to be a Regional Inspector of Labour.

Chapter Two: Hours Of Work
Working day.
2.
(a) A working day shall not exceed eight working hours.
(b) a working day shall not exceed seven working hours in night work on the day preceding the
weekly rest and on the day preceding a festival on which an employee is not employed, whether by
law or by agreement or custom.
Working week.
3.
A working week shall not exceed forty-five working hours.
Variation of working day or working week.
4.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations, prescribe –
(1) A working day shorter than that prescribed in section 2 or a working week shorter than that
prescribed in section 3, in respect of particular types of employment if he deems it necessary for
reasons connected with the employee’s health or the circumstances of such employment;
(2) a working day longer than that prescribed in section 2 or a working week longer than that
prescribed in section 2 –
(i) in respect of particular classes of agricultural employment or employment directly
connected with the care of animals;
(ii) in respect of employment in places for the care of the sick, pharmacies, convalescent
homes and institutions for the care of the aged or of children;
(iii) in respect of employment in restaurants, hotels and cafes;
(iv) in respect of all or any persons in non-industrial employment in the service of the State
or local authorities, whose employment is, in the opinion of the Minster of Labour and
Social Affairs, essential to the public and is prescribed by regulations provided that a
working day shall not exceed ten working hours and a working week shall not exceed on
average, over a period prescribed by regulations, forty-five working hours.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 2, the working day of a monthly employee in private
domestic service, not being a part-time employee, shall not exceed 10 working hours; and a
working day under this subsection shall be deemed a working day under section 2.
Variation by collective agreement.
5.
(a) Where the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs has approved a collective agreement
prescribing a working day longer than eight working hours or a working week longer than fortyfive hours, such working day or working week shall be deemed a working day or working week
under section 2 or section 3, as the case may be.
The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall not give his approval under this subsection, unless –
(1) he is satisfied that on account of special circumstances it is impossible to maintain a
working day as prescribed in section 2 or working week as prescribed in section 3.
(2) the average number of working hours over a period prescribed in the collective agreement
does not exceed ten hours per day or forty-five hours per week.
(b) Where the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs has approved a collective agreement
prescribing for one day in the week a working day not exceeding five working hours and for two
days in the week a working day not exceeding nine working hours, such working days shall be
deemed working days under section 2.
Prohibition of over-time employment.
6. An employee shall not be employed during over-time hours, unless such employment is allowed
under section 10 or has been permitted under section 11.

Chapter Three: Weekly Rest
Weekly hours of rest.
7.
(a) An employee’s weekly rest shall be not less than thirty-six consecutive hours in the week.
(b) The weekly rest shall include –
(1) in the case of a Jew, the Sabbath day;
(2) in the case of a person other than a Jew the Sabbath day or Sunday or Friday, whichever is
ordinarily observed by him as his weekly day of rest.
Variation of weekly hours of rest.

8. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations, prescribe in respect of particular
types of employment, a weekly rest shorter than thirty-six hours, but not shorter than twenty five
consecutive hours. A weekly-rest prescribed by regulations under this section shall be deemed the
weekly rest under section 7.
Prohibition of employment during weekly rest.
9. An employee shall not be employed during his weekly rest, unless such employment has been
permitted under section 12.
Prohibition of work during weekly rest.
9A.
(a) On the prescribed days of rest, within the meaning of the Law and Administration Ordinance,,
5708-1948, the owner of a work-shop or industrial undertaking shall not work in his workshop of
undertaking and the owners of a shop shall not do business in his shop.
(b) On the aforesaid days of rest, a member of a cooperative society shall not work in a workshop
or industrial undertaking of the society; a member of an agricultural cooperative society shall not
work in a workshop or industrial undertaking of the society unless the work is connected with the
services necessary for its farm.
(c) A non-Jew may, in respect of his workshop, industrial undertaking or shop situated in the area
of a local authority whose non-Jewish inhabitants, according to the determination of that
authority, are at least 25 per cent of its total population, observe the prohibitions imposed by this
section, at his option, either on the aforesaid days of rest or on his own Sabbath and holydays. The
same shall apply in a quarter of a local authority if the area and the proportion – not less than 25
per cent – of the non-Jewish inhabitants of that quarter have been determined for this purpose by
that authority.
(d) The provisions of subsection (c) shall not prevent a person charged under this section from
producing evidence that the proportion of non-Jewish inhabitants in the area of the local authority
or the quarter, as the case may be, is not less than 25 per cent.
Application of section 12.
9B. The provisions of section 12 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the grant of permits for work on
days of rest to a person to whom the provisions of section 9A apply.
Prohibition of discrimination.
9C.
(a) A person in need of an employee shall not refuse to accept a person for employment by reason
only that on being accepted for employment such person states that in accordance with a
prohibition imposed by commandments of his religion observed by him, he does not agree to
work on days of weekly rest, and he shall not require him to give an understanding to work on
days of weekly rest as a condition of his being accepted for employment.
(b) A person in need of an employee may request a person who has stated as specified in
subsection (a) to deliver to him, not later than seven days from the date of the request, a written
affidavit under section 15 of the Evidence Ordinance (New Version), 5731-1971, containing
particulars substantiating his statement, including particulars attesting to his religious convictions
and his observance of the commandments of his religion and, if he is a Jew, to his observance of
the dietary laws, both in and outside his home, and to his abstention from traveling on the
Sabbath.
Employee requested to work during time of weekly rest.
9D.
(a) An employee who has not previously worked on days of weekly rest and whom his employer
requests so to work or notifies that he intends so to request him may state to his employer, not
later than three days after the date of the request or notification, that in accordance with a
prohibition imposed by commandments of his religion observed by him, he does not agree to
work on days of weekly rest.
(b) An employer may request an employee who has stated as specified in subsection (a) to deliver
to him, not later than seven days from the day of the request, a written affidavit under section 15
of the Evidence Ordinance (New Version), 5731-1971, containing particulars as referred to in
section 9C(b).
Reasonable alteration of conditions of employment.
9E. An employer may reasonably alter the conditions of employment and work schedule of a person
who has stated under section 9C or 9D that he does not agree to work on days of weekly rest.
Inapplicability.
9F.
(a) Where a statement under section 9C or 9D is untruthful or where the person who made it has
been requested to deliver an affidavit as specified in those sections and has not done so, such
statement shall be void.
(b) The provisions of section 9C and 9D shall not apply –
(1) In a place of employment which is an enterprise or establishment, or part thereof,
concerned with public security;
(2) to work connected with State security or with the protection of the safety, well-being or
health of persons;
(3) to work connected with hotel accommodation;
(4) to work connected with the generation or conveyance of electric current;
(5) to work connected with the maintenance of essential supplies and services and designated
by order of the Ministers’ Committee mentioned in section 12B, with the approval of the
Knesset Labour and Social Affairs Committee, if, in the opinion of the said Ministers’
Committee the application of the said section is likely to prevent the maintenance of essential
supplies and services.
Jurisdiction of Labour Court.
9G.
(a) The Regional Court, within the meaning of the Labour Courts Law 5729-1969 (hereinafter
referred to as “the Regional Court) shall have sole jurisdiction in actions arising out of the
provisions of section 9C.
(b) The Regional Court shall not entertain an action based on the provisions of sections 9C to 9F
brought after the lapse of three months from the time when the cause of action arose.

Chapter Four: Employment During Prohibited Hours
Employment allowed during over-time hours.
10.
(a) An employee may be employed during over-time hours –
(1) where an accident or unexpected event renders the same necessary, or machinery or
equipment requires urgent attention, and to the extent only that such employment is required
in order to prevent serious disturbances of the normal process of the work concerned, or to
prevent injury to persons or property which cannot be prevented by other means;
(2) where persons are employed in shifts: provided that they shall not be employed for more
than one hour of over-time per day, and that the average for three weeks shall no exceed fortyfive
working hours per week;
(3) for the purpose of preparing an annual balance-sheet, stock-taking and trading before a
festival: provided that no person shall be so employed for more than four hours of overtime
per day or one hundred hours per year;
(b) Where a worker has been employed during over-time hours under paragraph (1) of subsection
(a), written notice to that effect shall be given to the Regional Inspector of Labour not later than
on the following day, and no further over-time employment shall be undertaken unless the
inspectors shall give written permission for the same and any conditions thereof are complied
with.
Permission for over-time employment.
11. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may permit an employee to be employed during overtime
hours –
(1) during any period of a state of emergency in the State by virtue of a declaration under section
9(a) of the Law and Administration Ordinance, 5708-1948, and at any time that the requirements
of essential supplies and services render the same necessary in the opinion of the Minister of
Labour and Social Affairs or, in the case of places of employment which are subject to the
direction of the Minister of Defence or in which orders are being fulfilled for the Israel Defense
Forces, in the opinion of the Minister of Defence;
(2) in non-industrial public services;
(3) in watchmen’s duties;
(4) in any place for the care of the sick, pharmacies, convalescent homes and institutions for the
care of the aged or of children.
(5) in restaurants, hotels and cafes, and cultural, sports and entertainment undertakings;
(6) in preparatory of final processes which must be carried out outside ordinary working hours or
in employment which by its nature must be performed intermittently and at intervals and requires
the continuous presence of the employee at his place of employment;
(7) in seasonal employment or in exceptional cases of temporary and extraordinary pressure of
work.
Permission for employment on weekly rest.
12.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may permit an employee to be employed during all
or any of the hours of weekly rest, if he is satisfied that interruption or work for all or part of the
weekly rest is likely to prejudice the defense of the State or the security of persons or property or
seriously to prejudice the economy, or a process of work or the supply of services which, in the
opinion of the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, are essential to the public or part thereof.
(b) A general permit under subsection (a) shall be given only upon the decision of a Ministerial
Committee consisting of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Religious Affairs and the Minister of
Labour and Social Affairs.
(c) A special permit under subsection (a) shall specify the trades or functions of the employees in
respect of whom it is given or the departments at the place of employment in respect of whose
employees it is given.
Over-time hours and increasing employment.
13. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs if he considers the same necessary for increasing
employment, may, by order published in Reshumot or by special notice, prohibit or restrict the
employment of an employee during over-time hours as allowed under section (10a), other than
paragraph (1) thereof, or as permitted under section 11.
Conditions and restriction in permits.
14.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may prescribe conditions and restrictions in permits.
(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall prescribe, in any permit for employment
during over-time hours, the limit of permitted over-time hours.
General and special permits.
15.
(a) A permit may be either general or special
(b) Notice of the grant of a general permit and of the conditions and restrictions prescribed
therein and notice of the revocation of a general permit or of the variation of the conditions
prescribed therein, shall be published in Reshumot.
A special permit shall not be granted for any period exceeding two years, and any person granted
such a permit shall exhibit it conspicuously at the place where persons are employed in
accordance therewith.
Over-time pay.
16.
(a) an employer shall pay an employee who is employed for over-time hours a wage not less that
1¼ times the ordinary wage for the first two over-time hours in any one day, and not less than 1½
times the ordinary wage for all subsequent over-time hours.
Where an employee’s wage or any part thereof is paid by piece rates, his employer shall pay him,
for each piece made during the first two over-time hours in any one day, a wage of not less than
1¼ times the wage payable for each piece made during ordinary working hours, and for each
piece made during over-time hours exceeding two, not less than 1½ times the wage payable for
each piece made during ordinary hours.
(b) Where the wage of an employee engaged in any of the employments mentioned in paragraph
(2) of section 4(a) or in section 4(b) is paid monthly or at a longer interval, his employer shall be
entitled, instead of paying a wage under this section, to give him a rest of not less than an hour
and a quarter for each of the first two over-time hours in any one day and of not less than an hour
and a half for every subsequent over-time hour.
Pay for working on weekly rest.
17.
(a) Where an employee is employed during all or any of the hours of weekly rest:
(1) his employer shall pay him for any such hours a wage of not less than 1½ times the
ordinary wage. Where the employee’s wage or any part thereof is paid by piece rates, his
employer shall pay him for each piece made during the hours of weekly rest a wage of not less
than 1½ times the wage payable for each piece made during ordinary working hours.
(2) his employer shall give him, instead of the hours of weekly rest on which he worked, such
number of hours of rest and at such time as are prescribed in the permit by virtue of which he
is so employed.
(b) Where an employee’s wage is paid monthly or at longer interval, his employer shall be
entitled to give him, instead of pay under paragraph (1) of subsection (a), a rest of not less than an
hour and a half for every hour of weekly rest on which he is employed.
Ordinary wage.
18. For the purposes of sections 16 and 17, the term “ordinary wage” includes all additional payments
made by an employer to an employee.
Regulations as to calculation of pay.
19. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, by regulations, may make supplementary directions as
to the calculation of over-time pay and pay for work during the weekly rest for the purposes of sections 16 and 17.

Chapter Five: Work Breaks
Work breaks.
20.
(a) In any working day of six or more hours, work shall cease for rest and refreshment for not less
than ¾ of an hour, including one continuous break of not less than half an hour. On the day
preceding the weekly rest or a festival, the break shall be for not less than half an hour.
(b) A break under subsection (a) shall not exceed three hours.
(c) During a break under subsection (a) lasting for half an hour or more, an employee may leave
his place of work, unless his presence at his place of work is essential to the work process or to
the working and use of the equipment and he has been required by his employer to remain at his
place of work, and, in such a case, the period of the breaks shall be regarded as part of the
working hours.
Break between working days.
21. There shall be a break of not less than eight hours between one working day and the next.
Night work.
22.
(a) An employee shall not be employed on night work for more than one week in three in any
undertaking in which persons are employed in shifts.
(b) In 1991, 1992 and 1993 in subsection (a) instead of “more than one week” read “more than
two weeks”.
Permits as to breaks.
23. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may permit a deviation from the provisions of sections
20 and 22 if it appears to him that the conditions of work or the duties or welfare of an employee
require or justify it, or in respect of a person who in reliance on section 9C or 9D, does not agree to
work on days of weekly rest.
The provisions of sections 14(a) and 15 apply to a permit under this section.

Chapter Six: Labor Inspection And Penalties

Powers of Inspector.
24.
(a) Any Inspector of Labour, in relation to any place in which he has reason to believe that a
person is employed, shall have all the powers of an Inspector under section 10(1) of the
Department of Labour Ordinance, 1943.
(b) An Inspector of Labour may, in any matter relating to this Law, examine any person being in
a place visited by such Inspector in virtue of his powers under subsection (a), but no person shall
be required to give an answer or evidence calculated to incriminate him.
An Inspector of Labour may prepare a record of the answer and statements of the person
examined.
(c) A record prepared in accordance with subsection (b) shall have the effect of a statement
prepared in accordance with the provisions of section 2 of the Criminal Procedure (Evidence)
Ordinance, and sections 3 and 4 of that Ordinance shall apply thereto.
Register of Working Hours, etc.
25.
(a) Every employer shall keep a register of working hours, hours of weekly rest, over-time hours,
pay for over-time hours and for work during the weekly rest, and such particulars shall be entered
therein as shall be prescribed by regulation.
(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, by notice published in Reshumot, shall prescribe
the classes of employers to whom this section shall apply.
Penalties
26.
(a) Any person who employs another person in contravention of this Law of otherwise than in
accordance with regulations made or a permit granted thereunder, shall be liable to a fine not
exceeding nine thousand, six hundred new Shekalim in respect of every employee so employed or
to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or to both such penalties.
(b) Any person who interferes with an Inspector of Labour in the exercise of his powers or
refuses to answer any question which he is obliged to answer or fails to exhibit a permit as
required by section 15(b) shall be liable to a fine not exceeding nine thousand, six hundred new
Shekalim or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two weeks or to both such penalties.
(c) A person who contravenes any provision of section 9A shall be liable to a fine not exceeding
nine thousand, six hundred new Shekalim.
Responsibility of directors and managers.
27. Where a company, co-operative society or any other body of persons has employed any person in
contravention of this Law or other wise than in accordance with regulations made or a permit granted
thereunder, every director, manager or official of such body of persons shall likewise be regarded as
responsible for the offence and may be tried and punished as if he had committed it, unless one of the
following is proved:
(1) that the offence was committed without his knowledge;
(2) that he took all proper steps to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Law relating to
such offence.
Position of workers contracting group.
28. In the case of a worker’s contracting group, whether or not it be a corporate body, each member of
the group shall be deemed to be an employee of the person who has entrusted any work to the group,
provided he would be so deemed if a direct link existed between him and that person.
29. Repealed.

Chapter Seven: Various Provisions

Application of this Law.
30.
(a) This law shall not apply to the employment of the following.
(1) members of the Israel police; and members of the Prison Service;
(2) government employees whose duties require them to be available for employment outside
ordinary working hours;
(3) sailors and fisherman;
(4) members of an air-crew;
(5) persons employed in administrative duties or duties requiring a special degree of personal
confidence;
(6) employees, the conditions and circumstances of whose employment render it impossible
for the employer to control their working hours and hours of rest.
(b) Where a dispute has arisen as to whether an employee belongs to a class of employees to
whose employment this Law does not apply, the employee, employer, employees’ committee at
the place of employment, if any, or an Inspector of Labour, may apply to the Labour, within the
meaning of the Labour Courts Law, 5729-1969, for a decision; the Court shall give the
employees’ committee an opportunity to state its case, in such manner as it shall direct, even it
was not the committee which applied for the decision.
The State as employer.
31. For the purposes of this Law, a government employee shall be regarded in the same way as any
other employee.
Implementation and regulations.
32. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs is charged with the implementation of this Law and may
make regulations as to any matter relating to its implementation, including regulations as to the manner
in which an employer shall bring the provisions of this Law to the knowledge of his employees.
Duty to consult.
33. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall not make regulations under sections 4, 8 or 19,
grant a general permit under sections, 11, 12 or 23, make an order under section 13 or exercise his
powers under section 25(b), except after consultation with the national workers’ organisation
representing the largest number of workers and representative national organisations of employers who,
in the opinion of the Minister, have an interest in the matter.
Delegation of powers.
34. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may delegate his powers under this Law, other than his
power to make regulations, to make an order under section 13, to grant a general permit under section
11, 12, or 23 or to publish a notice under section 25(b).
Notice of any such delegation of powers shall be published in Reshumot.
Preservation of rights.
35. This Law shall not derogate from any right given to an employee by law, collective agreement,
contract of service or custom.
Repeal.
36. Article 495 of the Majelle is hereby repealed.
Commencement.
37. This Law shall come into force as of 27th Elul, 5711 (28th September 1951).
Special Provisions in Amendment No.8 to the Law,
5753-1973
5. Transitional Provisions
In a workplace where prior to the coming into force of this law there is a collective agreement in force
in which the hours of work between 45 and 47 hours are not overtime hours – such provisions in the
collective agreement shall be annulled within sixty days after the date on which this law came into
force.
N.B. The law came into force on 11.8.93

Definitions.
1. In this Law –
“Collective agreement” means a collective agreement as defined in section 1 of the Collective
Agreement Law, 5717-1957, whether or not it was made and submitted for registration under the said
Law, and any other collective arrangement, and includes an extension order under the said Law;
“worker” means an employed person in respect of whom the matter of a payment for a period of
sickness is not regulated by a collective agreement;
“salaried worker” means a worker the remuneration for whose work is mainly payable on the basis of a
month or a loner period;
“wage-worker” means a worker other than a salaried worker;
“sickness” means the temporary or permanent incapacity of a worker to carry out his work, arising,
according to medical findings, out of ill-health;
“benefit fund” has the meaning assigned to this term in section 47 of the Income Tax Ordinance.
Right to sick pay.

2.
(a) A worker absent from work in consequence of sickness shall, subject to the maximum period of
entitlement under section 4, be entitled to receive from his employer –
(1) from the fourth day of his absence as aforesaid, a payment under this Law in respect of the
period of his sickness (such payment hereinafter referred to as “sick pay”);
(2) in respect of the second and the third day of his absence as aforesaid, half the amount of
the sick pay.
Provided that the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, with the approval of the Knesset
Labour and Social Affairs Committee, enact by regulations, provisions as to the payment of
sick pay in respect of the first, the second and the third day of worker’s absence as aforesaid,
and such provisions shall have effect notwithstanding any provision of this section.

(b) The period of sickness shall be calculated as follows:
(1) in the case of a salaried worker, it shall be all the days of his sickness, including days of
weekly rest and holydays;
(2) in the case of a wage-worker who worked full-time for the same employer or at the same
place of employment, shall be all the days of his sickness, except days of weekly rest and
holydays.;
(3) in the case of a wage-worker who worked otherwise than full-time for the same employer
or at the same place of employment (such a worker hereinafter referred to as an “intermittently
employed worker”), it shall be a number of days which bears to the total number of his days of
sickness, except days of weekly rest and holydays, the same proportion as the number of his
days of employment during the quarter of his fullest employment in the twelve months
immediately preceding his sickness bears to the total number of work-days in that quarter.
(4) in the case of an intermittently employed worker who has not yet worked for a period of
three months for the same employer or at the same place of employment, it shall be a number
of days which bears to the total number of his days of sickness, except days of weekly rest and
holydays, the same proportion as the weekly average of his days of employment during the
period of employment preceding his sickness bears to six;
(5) Where a wage-worker or intermittently employed worker used to work on days of weekly
rest and on holydays under a permit pursuant to a Hours of Work and Rest Law, 5711-1951,
such days shall be included in computing the period of sickness; further more, in the case of
an intermittently employed worker under paragraph (3), the words “the total number of
workdays in that quarter” in that paragraph shall be replace by the word “ninety”, and in the
case of an intermittently employed worker under paragraph (4), the word “six” in that
paragraph shall be replaced by the word “seven”.

(c) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, with the approval of the Knesset Labour and
Social Affairs Committee, make regulations concerning procedure in connection with the receipt of
sick pay, including the delivery of particulars and evidence to the employer as to the sickness, as
well as concerning the date of payment of the sick pay.
Part-time work or suitable other work.
3. (a) Where, on the basis of medical findings, a physician establishes that, owing to medical
handicaps, a worker is incapable for certain period of time of carrying out work of a particular
nature or under certain conditions and that as a result he is only capable of carrying out his work
partially, and the employer offers him suitable other full-time or part-time work, at the same place
of employment, the worker shall not be entitled to sick pay, but his wage for the work offered him
shall not be less than the wage he would have received if he had continued with his former work,
calculated on the basis of the components referred to in calculated sick pay under section 6.
(b) Where the employer does not offer the worker suitable work as specified in subsection (a), the
worker shall be entitled to the amount of sick pay which would be due to him but for the provisions
of this section.
(c) For the purpose of this section, “suitable work” means work to which medical handicaps as
referred to in subsection (a) do not apply, and which is of the same kind as the work in which the
worker was mainly employed in the three years immediately preceding his sickness of is other work
suited to his vocational training, educational standard and physical fitness.
(d) An offer of suitable work under subsection (a) requires consultation with the workers’
committee at the place of employment. Where there is no workers’ committee, the provision of
subsection (b) shall apply as if the employer had not offered suitable work.
Maximum period of entitlement to sick pay.
4. (a) The period of entitlement to sick pay shall not exceed a cumulative period of one and one half
days for every full month of work that the worker worked for the same employer or at the same
place of employment from the day on which this Law first applied to him but not more than ninety
days in all, less any period in respect of which the worker received sick pay under this Law.
(b) Where in a particular month a worker did not work for the same employer or at the same place
of employment on all work-days, then, for the purposes of subsection (a), twenty-five workdays
shall be regarded as a full working month, and a fraction of a full working month shall entitle the
worker to proportionate sick pay.
(c) A period in which sick pay insurance exists in respect of a worker under the provisions of
sections 8 and 9 shall not be included in computing the period of his entitlement to sick pay:
Provided that a period for which he is not entitled to a payment under the conditions of insurance –
except any such waiting period of qualifying period as is obligatory under the said conditions – shall
be included in the computation.
(d) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, with the approval of the Knesset Labour and
Social Affairs Committee, make regulations as to the method of computing the period of
entitlement and as to periods of work and work breaks to be included in the computation: Provided
that any work break in respect of which the worker is entitled to a wage or to be treated as wage
shall be regarded as work.
Rate of sick pay.
5. (a) The rate of sick pay shall be seventy-five per cent of the wage the worker would be entitled to
receive in the period of his entitlement to sick pay had he continued to work.
(b) Where a worker is paid according to output, the rate of sick pay shall be seventy-five per cent
of the wage he would be entitled to receive in the period of his entitlement to sick pay if he
continued to work and produced on each day of that period the average output per workday he
produced in the three months preceding his sickness.
Components of wage for the purposes of sick pay.
6. (a) The following are the components of the wage on which the calculation of sick pay shall be
based:
(1) the basic wage;
(2) a seniority allowance;
(3) a cost-of-living or price increase compensation allowance;
(4) a family allowance;
(5) a departmental or professional allowance.
(b) Where the wage of a worker is not payable according to the components enumerated in
subsection (a) or to part thereof, the wage payable to him for an ordinary workday, plus any
allowance mentioned in subsection (a) which is payable to him shall be taken into account for the
purposes of that subsection.
(c) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, with the approval of the Knesset Labour and
Social Affairs Committee, prescribe by regulations another method or other components for the
computation of the wage on which sick pay is to be based.
Sick pay to be treated as wage.
7. Sick pay payable by an employer shall in all respects be treated as wage.
Sick pay insurance.
8. An employer shall be exempt from paying sick pay to his worker under the provisions of sections 2
to 7 –
(1) If he takes out sick pay insurance for him with the benefit fund with which the greatest
number of workers in his trade are given sick pay insurance under a collective agreement, the
conditions of his insurance not being inferior to the conditions of theirs;
(2) in the absence of a collective agreement as referred to in paragraph (a) – if he takes out sick
pay insurance for him with a benefit fund consented to by him in writing, provided that the
conditions of sick insurance are not inferior to the conditions on which the greatest number of
workers in the State are given sick pay insurance under a collective agreement.
(3) where the worker has not given his consent under paragraph (2) – if the employer takes out
sick pay insurance for him with the benefit fund with which the greatest number of workers in the
State are given sick pay insurance, the conditions of his insurance not being inferior to the
condition of theirs.
Consent.
9. Where written consent for the purposes of section 8 is given by a majority of the workers at a
particular place of employment, all the workers at that place of employment shall be deemed to have
given their consent. Any change in consent thus given shall require a two-thirds majority of the
workers.
Denial of right to sick pay.
10. A worker who actually works during a period of sickness, either for a wage or for other
remuneration, shall not be entitled to sick pay in consequence of that sickness, and if sick pay has
already been paid, the employer or the benefit fund, as the case may be, may claim the return thereof or
deduct if from any amount he or it owes to the worker.
Application of other laws.
11. A worker entitled to a payment under any enactment for a period of incapacity for work for health
reasons, other than a payment for invalidity benefit under Chapter Three “B” of the National Insurance
Law (Consolidated Version) 5728-1968, or compensation by virtue of the Civil Wrongs Ordinance
(New Version), shall not be entitled to sick pay under this Law for the period for which he is entitled to
a payment as aforesaid or of any period in respect of which that enactment expressly provides that he is
not entitled to a payment for it in consequence of that sickness.
Saving of rights.
12. (a) A worker entitled to sick pay both under this Law and under the conditions of employment
agreed upon between him and his employer or customary at his place of employment shall be
entitled to sick pay on one of these grounds at his option.
(b) This Law shall not derogate from the rights of workers under a collective agreement,
irrespective of whether this Law applies to them or not.
Implementation and regulations.
13. (a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs is charged with the implementation of this Law and
may make regulations as to any matter relating to its implementation.
(b) Regulations under this Law may be for workers or employers in general or for particular
categories of workers or employers.
Commencement.
This Law shall come into force on the 2nd of Tishri 5737 (1 October, 1976).

Chapter One: Preliminary

Interpretation.
1. In this Law –
“leave” means annual leave due to an employee under this Law;
“Inspector of Labour” means an Inspector within the meaning of the Department of Labour Ordinance,
1942;
“wage-worker” means an employee the remuneration for whose work is wholly or in part paid
otherwise than on the basis of a month or a longer period;
“leave fund” means a leave fund established or approved by the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs
under section 18;
“working year” means a period of twelve months beginning with the 1st of April of each year, from the
1st of April, 1951, onwards.

Chapter Two: Leave

Right to leave.
2. Every employee is entitled to leave, which shall be given in accordance with the provision of this
Law.
Duration of leave.
3.
(a) The duration of the leave, in respect of a working year with the same employer or at the same
place of employment shall be as follows:
(1) in respect of each of the first four years – 14 days;
(2) in respect of the fifth year – 16 days;
(3) in respect of the sixth year – 18 days;
(4) in respect of the seventh year – 21 days;
(5) in respect of the eighth year and onwards – one additional day per working year up to a
period of leave of 28 days; but the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations,
prescribe longer leave in the case of some particular employment if he deems it necessary for
reasons connected with the employee’s health or the circumstances of such employment.
The days of leave shall include not more than one weekly rest for seven days of leave.
(b) Where the legal bond between the employee and the employer exists throughout the working
year, and the employee works during that year
(1) at least 200 days, the number of leave days shall be as specified in subsection (a);
(2) less than 200 days, the number of leave days shall bear to the number of days specified
in subsection (a) the same proportion as the number of actual working days bears to 200;
fractions of a leave day shall be disregarded.
(c) Where the legal bond between the employee and the employer exists during a part of the
working year, and the employee works during that part of the year.
(1) at least 240 days, the number of leave days shall be as specified in subsection (a);
(2) less than 240 days, the number of leave days shall bear to the number of days specified
in subsection (a) the same proportion as the number of actual working days bears to 240;
fractions of a leave day shall be disregarded.
Temporary wage-worker.
4.
(a) Section 3 shall not apply to a wage worker who does not work at least 75 consecutive days with
the same employer or at the same place of employment either in one and the same working year or
in two consecutive working years. Such a worker shall be paid a leave equivalent as specified in Chapter Three.

(b) For the purposes of section (a), working days shall be deemed to be consecutive even if there is
a break in the work owing to
(1) reserve service under the Defence Service Law, 5709-1949; or
(2) the weekly day of rest, or a festival on which no work is done, whether by virtue of Law or by
agreement or custom, or the First of May; or
(3) leave under this Law or any paid or unpaid leave or vacation given to an employer by virtue
of law or with the consent of the employer; or
(4) a strike or lockout, or
(5) an accident or illness; or
(6) days of family mourning when the employee does not work in deference to religion or
custom; or
(7) an occasional break without interruption of the employee-employer relationship.
(8) Training for labour service according to the Emergency Labour Service Law, 5727-1967.
Calculation of leave days.
5.
(a) The following shall not be counted as leave days:
(1) days on which the employee is on reserve service under the Defence Service Law, 5709-
1949;
(2) festive days on which no work is done, whether by virtue of law or by agreement or custom,
not including the weekly days of rest;
(3) days of maternity leave;
(4) days on which the employee is incapacitated for work owing to an accident of illness;
(5) days of family mourning when the employee does not work in defence to religion or
custom;
(6) days of a strike or lockout;
(7) days of notice of dismissal, except if an in so far as they exceed fourteen days.
(b) Where days as specified in subsection (a) fall within a leave period, the leave shall be deemed
to be interrupted for the duration of such days, and the deficiency shall as far as possible be
made up within the same working year.
When leave shall be given.

6. Leave shall be given in the last month of the working year in respect of which it is given, or in the
working year immediately following.
Accumulation of leave.

7.
(a) Leave cannot be accumulated; provided that an employee may, with the consent of the
employer, take a leave installment of at least seven days and add the balance to the leave given him
in the following two working years.
(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations, prohibit the accumulation of
leave where in his opinion the health of the employee or the circumstances under which the work is
performed require that the whole period of leave be given each year.
Leave to be given at one time.

8. Leave shall be given at one time, provided that with the consent of the employee and the employer
and with the approval of the local employees’ committee, if any, it may be split up, but only so that one
spell of leave is at least seven days.
Commencement of leave.

9.
(a) The date of the commencement of leave shall be fixed at least fourteen days in advance, and as
soon as it has been fixed, the employer shall enter it in a register kept in accordance with section 26,
if he is under an obligation to keep such a register.
(b) This section does not apply to spells of leave of less than seven days.
Chpater Three: Payments
Leave pay.
10.
(a) The employer shall pay to the employee, in respect of the days of leave, leave pay in an
amount equal to the amount of his normal pay.

(b) Normal pay, for the purposes of this section, shall be –
(1) in the case of an employee the remuneration for whose work is wholly or in part paid on
the basis of a month or a longer period – the pay which the employee would receive, in respect
of the period in question, if he had not gone on leave but had continued working;
(2) in the case of a wage worker – the average daily pay multiplied by the number of leave
days; the average pay shall be the sum resulting from the division of the pay for the quarter
immediately preceding the leave, by ninety; where the said quarter includes months of less
than full employment, the average daily pay may, at the worker’s option, be calculated on the
basis of the quarter of fullest employment within the twelve months immediately preceding
the leave.

(c) Pay, for the purposes of subsection (b), shall be any remuneration, in money or money’s
worth, paid to the employee by the employer in respect of normal working hours unless otherwise
provided in a collective agreement approved in that behalf by the Minister of Labour and Social
Affairs, an amount paid to the employee to cover special expenses not arising during leave time
shall not be considered as part of the pay.
When leave pay shall be paid.

11. Leave shall be paid not later than on the day on which the employee would receive his pay had he
not gone on leave but had continued working; but if the employee goes on leave for not less than seven
days and requests that the payment of leave pay be advanced, it shall be paid not later than two days
before the commencement of the leave.
Loss of right to leave pay.

12. An employee shall not be gainfully employed during his leave and if he performs regular paid
work during that period, he shall lose his right to leave pay; if it has already been paid, the employer
may deduct an identical amount from the employee’s pay or collect it in any manner in which a civil
debt may be collected.
Leave compensation.

13. If an employee’s employment ceases before he has received the leave due to him up to the day of
cessation of his employment, the employer shall pay him leave compensation of an amount equal to the
amount of leave pay which would be payable to him had he gone on leave on the day of cessation of
his employment.
Calculation of normal pay, and disputes concerning payments.

14.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations, issue supplementary directions
as to the calculation of normal pay for the purposes of section 10.

(b) In the event of a dispute as to the mode of calculating leave pay or leave compensation, or in
connection with section 12, a Regional Court, within the meaning of the Labour Courts Law,
5729-1969, shall decide the matter.
Payment of leave equivalent.

15.
(a) Where a wage-worker works with the same employer or at the same place of employment not
less than one day but less than 75 consecutive days as specified in section 4, either in the same
working year or in two consecutive working years, and there is no written contract of employment
between them for a consecutive period exceeding 74 days, the employer shall pay in respect of
such worker a leave equivalent of at least four per cent of the amount of his pay.

(b) The leave equivalent shall be paid into the leave fund of the industry in which the worker is
employed or in such other manner as may be prescribed by regulations.

(c) Where any leave equivalent is payable into a leave fund, the employer shall pay it at the
beginning of the month following the working month, in accordance with the wage payable in the
preceding month to workers as referred to in subsection (a). If the worker continues to work with
the same employer or at the same place of employment beyond 74 consecutive days, the employer
shall pay him leave pay or leave compensation, as the case may be, and the leave fund shall
refund to the employer, on his application, the amounts he has transferred to it in respect of that
worker. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may prescribe, be regulations, the times and
procedure for the refund of the amounts by the leave fund.

(d) A leave equivalent paid into the leave fund shall be paid out to the worker in
accordance with the provisions of the fund’s statute, and a leave equivalent paid in any other
manner shall be paid out to him in a manner to be prescribed by regulations.

(e) The leave fund may – with the consent of the workers, given by collective agreement, contract
of employment or in such other manner as shall be prescribed – come to an agreement with the
employer concerning the payment of leave pay into the fund in respect also of workers who have
worked with him more than 75 days.
Right to claim leave equivalent.

16. A leave equivalent payable by an employer shall be deemed to be a debt due from him to the leave
fund or to the person to whom it is payable under regulations.
How payments shall be dealt with.

17. Leave pay, leave compensation and leave equivalents shall for all intents and purposes be dealt
with like pay.

Chapter Four: Leave Funds
Establishment and approval.
18.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may establish a leave fund, and he also may, on
such conditions as he may think fit, approve a leave fund if he is satisfied that it offers sufficient
guarantee for the efficient use, for purposes of recreation and recuperation, of the leave
equivalents paid into it.

(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall not establish or approve more than one leave
fund for each industry.

(c) A leave fund shall be managed by the employees as may be prescribed by regulations.
Control.

19. A leave fund shall be under the control of the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs as may be
determined by regulations.
Corporate body.

20. A leave fund shall be a corporate body and shall be competent to enter into contracts and to be a
party in any legal or other proceeding.
Statute.

21. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall draw up a model statute for leave funds, and such
statute, with such modifications as may be approved by him, shall be the statute of each fund, and each
fund shall operate in accordance with it; the model statute shall be published in Reshumot.
Modes of operation.

22. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may, by regulations, issue directions as to the manner of
establishing a leave fund, its mode of operation and the keeping of its accounts, the submission and
publication of reports, the methods of control, the manner of investing moneys and the use of balances
for purposes of recreation and recuperation, and also as to the establishment, composition and
procedure of supervisory boards. Withdrawal of approval and winding-up.

23.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may withdraw his approval of a leave fund, or wind
up a leave fund established by him, if –
(1) if does not fulfill the conditions attached to its approval; or
(2) it does not comply with regulations made under this Law; or
(3) the withdrawal of approval or winding-up is, in the opinion of the Minister of Labour and
Social Affairs, desirable in the interest of the persons to whom the leave equivalents are
payable.

(b) Where Minister of Labour and Social Affairs withdraws his approval of, or winds up a leave
fund, he shall notify, by order, to whom the moneys of the fund shall pass and on what conditions.
Upon such an order being given, the moneys of the fund shall be vested in the person to whom
they are to pass according to the order, and nobody else shall have control thereof.
Publication of notices.

24. Notice of the establishment or approval, and also of the winding-up or withdrawal of approval, of a
leave fund shall be published in Reshumot.
Registrar of Leave Funds.

25.
(a) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall appoint a person to be a Registrar of Leave
Funds; notice of the appointment shall be published in Reshumot.

(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may delegate to the Registrar of Leave Funds his
powers under this Chapter, except the power to make regulations and the power to wind up or
withdraw the approval of a leave fund; notice of such a delegation of powers shall be published in
Reshumot.

Chapter Five: Implementation and Penalties
Leave register.
26.
(a) An employer shall keep a leave register, in which particulars to be prescribed by regulations
shall be entered in respect of each employee.

(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall, by notice published in Reshumot, determine
the categories of employees to whom this section shall apply.

(c) In a notice under subsection (b), the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may prescribe that
the leave register shall form part of another register which the employer is bound to keep under a
law with whose implementation the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs is charged.
Powers of Inspector of Labour.

27.
(a) An Inspector of Labour, in relation to any place in which he has reason to believe that a
person is employed, shall have all the powers of an Inspector under sections 10(1) of the
Department of Labour Ordinance, 1943.

(b) An Inspector of Labour may, in any matter relating to this Law, examine any person being in
a place visited by such Inspector in virtue of his powers under subsection (a); but no person shall
be required to give an answer or evidence calculated to incriminate him. An Inspector of Labour
may prepare a record of the answers and statements of the person examined.

(c) A record prepared in accordance with subsection (b) shall have the effect of a statement
prepared in accordance with section 2 of the Criminal Procedure (Evidence) Ordinance, and
section 3 and 4 of that Ordinance shall apply thereto.
Offences and penalties.

28.
(a) An employer who –
(1) fails to give an employee leave in accordance with this Law; or
(2) fails, without sufficient excuse, to pay within a reasonable time an leave pay, leave
compensation or leave equivalent under this Law shall be guilty of an offence and shall be
liable to a fine not exceeding nine thousand, six hundred new Shekalim in respect of each
employee in relation to whom the offence is committed.

(b) A person who –
(1) obstructs an Inspector of Labour in the exercise of his powers; or
(2) refuses to answer a question of Inspector of Labour which he is under a duty to answer; or
(3) fails to keep a register in accordance with section 26;
(4) fails to enter in a leave register particulars required to be entered therein or enters in a
leave register false or incomplete particulars; or
(5) contravenes regulations made by the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs under this Law
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a fine not exceeding nine thousand, six
hundred new Shekalim.
Responsibility of directors and mangers.

29. Where a company, cooperative society or other body of persons fails to give an employee leave in
accordance with Law or fails, without sufficient excuse, to pay within a reasonable time any leave pay,
leave compensation or leave equivalent, every director, manager or official of such body shall be
deemed to be likewise guilty of the offence and may be prosecuted and punished as if he had
committed it, unless he proves –
(a) that the offence was committed without his knowledge; or
(b) that he took all appropriate steps to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Law in
connection with the offence in question.
Order to pay.
30.
(a) In the trial of a person for an offence under section 28(a), the employee may plead and
examine witnesses, and the Court or Labour Court may, upon the application of the employee,
order the accused to pay to the employee an amount equal to the amount of leave pay which
would have been payable to him had the leave been given at the end of the working year
immediately following the working year in respect of which the leave was due.

(b) In the trial of a person for an offence under section 28(a)(2), the employee or the person to
whom the leave equivalent is payable, as the case may be, may plead and examine witnesses, and
the Court or Labour Court may, upon the application of the employee or of the person to whom
the leave equivalent is payable, order the accused to pay the leave pay, leave compensation or
leave equivalent which, being liable therefore, he has failed to pay.

(c) A decision of the Court or Labour Court ordering the accused to pay as specified in subsection
(a) or (b) shall, in all matters relating to execution, have the effect of a final judgment of a
competent court in favour of the employee or the person to whom the leave equivalent is payable,
as the case my be.
Prescription.

31. The period of prescription for any action under this Law, whether civil or criminal, is three years.
Leave at a time of emergency.

32. In a period when a state of emergency exists in the State in virtue of a declaration under section
9(a) of the Law and Administration Ordinance, 5708-1948, or at a time when in the opinion of the
Minister of Labour and Social Affairs the exigencies of supply in the State necessitate it, the Minister
of Labour and Social Affairs may, by general or specific order, postpone the time of leave in respect of
all, or a particular category of, employees; in the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs makes an order
as aforesaid, he shall prescribe the time within which the leave shall be given or the manner in which
the employees shall be compensated for the leave.
State employees.

33. For the purposes of this Law, a State employee shall be treated like any other employee.
Workers’ contracting group.

34. In the case of a workers’ contracting group, whether or not it be a corporate body, each of the
members of the group shall be deemed to be an employee of the person who has entrusted any work to
the group, provided he would be so deemed if a direct link existed between him and that person, and
each of such members shall be deemed to be a wage-worker who has worked less than 75 consecutive
days and in respect of whom a leave equivalent is payable under section 15.
Inapplicability.
35.
(a) This Law shall not apply to –
(1) an agricultural worker who receives the entire remuneration for his work in the form of a
share of the produce or in services or money’s worth;
(2) repealed.
(3) a person employed in casual employment otherwise than for the purposes of the
employer’s business or trade.

(b) The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs may make regulations specifying what shall be
casual employment for the purposes of subsection (a)(3).
Implementation and regulations.

36. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs is charged with the implementation of this Law and may
make regulations as to any matters relating to its implementation.
Duty to Consult.

37. The Minister of Labour and Social Affairs shall not make regulations, except regulations under
section 26(a), and shall not exercise his powers under section 18(a), 21, 23(a), 26(b), or 32, save after
consultation with the national employees’ organisation representing the greatest number of employees
and with national employers’ organisations which in the opinion of the Minister of Labour and Social
Affairs are representative and are concerned in the matter.
Saving of rights.

38. This Law shall not derogate from any right granted to an employee under any law, collective
agreement or work contract, or by custom.
Commencement.

39. This Law shall come into force on the 1st of Tishri, 5712, October 1, 1951.