Employees of Bank Yahav for Government Employees Ltd. have received a smaller transfer of ownership bonus compared with the bonuses paid to employees of other banks, according to a study by "Globes". The bank is owned in equal shares by Mizrahi Tefahot Bank (TASE:MZTF) and Economic and Cultural Enterprises for State Employees Ltd., half of which is owned by the state and half by the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel).
Bank Yahav employees received a special bonus amounting to five salaries each following the bank's takeover by Mizrahi Tefahot Bank. The bonuses included both a transfer of ownership bonus and a bonus on the bank's profit in 2007.
In contrast, employees of Bank Otsar Hahayal received a transfer of ownership bonus of five salaries irrespective of bonuses on profits, and employees of Bank Massad are expected to get the same terms. Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI; LSE:80OA) sold the two banks to First International Bank.
Bank Otsar Hayahal's 770 employees received an average bonus of NIS 62,000, for a total of NIS 48.3 million. Bank Massad's 300 employees received an average bonus of NIS 73,000, for a total of NIS 22 million. Bank Yahav's 577 employees (the monthly average in 2007) received an average bonus of NIS 43,000, for a total of NIS 24.7 million. Since this bonus includes bonuses on the bank's profits for 2007, the transfer of ownership bonus amounts to an average of NIS 35,000 per employee.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 4, 2008
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