Rivlin: Knesset cafeteria staff won’t be fired

Most cafeteria workers are fired twice a year, when the Knesset’s recesses begin.

By LAHAV HARKOV
Knesset cafeteria 311 (photo credit: Courtesy)
Knesset cafeteria 311
(photo credit: Courtesy)
Knesset cafeteria workers canceled their strike and protest on Monday, as Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin announced they would not be fired before every recess.
Also on Monday, the Knesset administration put out a tender for a new catering company to manage its three cafeterias. The new company will have to stop the current norm of firing the 50 workers biannually, and will receive a subsidy for doing so.
“I hope this solution will succeed and give the cafeteria workers a feeling of security instead of the constant uncertainty that they face before every recess,” Rivlin said.
The 50 workers in the Knesset’s three cafeterias are contract employees of Shefa Food Services. Last week, they received notice that they would be fired as of Wednesday. Most cafeteria workers are fired twice a year, when the Knesset’s recesses begin. They are then rehired when the recesses end. Wednesday is the last day of the winter session.