A clean break: New order secures better pay for contracted cleaning and security workers

Israel’s Knesset Labour and Welfare Committee has approved a significant amendment set to improve the livelihoods of thousands of cleaning and security workers employed by government contractors. The decision authorizes a one-time grant of 6,000 shekels and monthly wage increases of up to 900 shekels, in line with the 2023 public-sector framework agreement reached between the State of Israel and the Histadrut.

The amendment—approved under the leadership of Committee Chair MK Michal Waldinger—extends the benefits of the framework agreement to outsourced workers in the public sector’s security and cleaning services, with necessary adaptations. Once signed by the Minister of Finance, the updated directive will take effect on January 1, 2026.

Significant Financial Improvements

The one-time grant and wage increase reflect the benefits agreed on in the Employment of Workers by Service Contractors in Security and Cleaning in Public Bodies Law (2013). A landmark legislation born out of a long Histadrut-led struggle to curb precarious employment and strengthen protections for the country’s most vulnerable workers. The law established a unique mechanism that requires periodic updates to the employment order, ensuring that improvements negotiated for public-sector employees are also extended to contracted workers in cleaning and security roles.

Today’s approval activates that mechanism, ensuring that these workers “are not left behind.”

A Landmark Achievement for Frontline Workers

Yossi Barabi, Chair of the Histadrut’s Security, Caregiving, and Cleaning Workers’ Union, hailed the decision as a “tremendous achievement” for the sector:

“Security workers contribute hundreds of days in reserve service, and cleaning workers operate 24/7 in hospitals, schools, and essential facilities. They are no longer invisible. Like every other worker in Israel, they deserve to earn a dignified living. We will continue fighting for their rights.”

This achievement underscores a growing consensus that outsourcing cannot be a justification for second-tier conditions. By tying contract workers’ rights to public-sector frameworks, the update strengthens a precedent that could reshape labour standards across the economy. For many cleaning and security workers, this step is more than a raise; it is a foothold in the long climb toward equality.