Arnon Bar-David: Nobody can legislate against the Histadrut today

Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar-David convened a special leadership meeting today (Sunday) regarding the framework agreement and the teachers’ aide salary agreement signed last week.

During the meeting, Bar-David commented on the country’s situation following the reforms to the judicial system: “We are expected to shut down the country on the issue of reform. I am facing great pressure from people whose camp I used to belong to. But I take into account my position as the Chairman of the Histadrut, that I was elected to bring livelihood to the workers, to protect them, to prevent legislation against the workers and pensioners – and we are upholding the task. This is the wisdom according to which I have led the Histadrut in recent years. We led her to be a part of all the camps in Israel. We sit here in the Histadrut of all the tribes of Israel in friendship and love.”

During his remarks, the Chairman of the Histadrut turned to the Prime Minister so that he would use his power to bring the parties to talks: “Even the Government needs to understand that it is possible to sit together and not divide, not to go against each other, to understand the needs of the other, even if you do not agree with him, nor to call them names. If you are a leader, you will lead everyone. Chosen to be everyone’s Prime Minister. That’s how I see it, and that’s how I’ve seen it all my life.”

Bar-David concluded: “We need to be in the middle. This is the new Histadrut. I believe in this way, and it is the one that will save this house and give it the possibility to be relevant in a hundred years. They are trying to scare me because they can legislate against us. Who today can legislate against us? There isn’t anyone. With experience and seniority, I see things with clarity. If I’m sitting at the same table with the Minister of Finance, we know what the opening conditions with him were, and now we are presenting agreements to the people of Israel and creating dialogue. This means that it is possible to engage in dialogue between all the tribes in the country and create calm for all the nation.”