First International Bank of Israel (TASE: FTIN1;FTIN5) chairman Jack Elaad today apologized for the week-long strike at the bank. In an interview with "Globes", he broke the management's silence and presented its position.
The 146 branches nationwide of First International Bank and its subsidiary Poalei Agudat Israel Bank are shut as 3,000 employees stay at home. Today, they were joined by 900 employees of Bank Otsar Hahayal, another subsidiary.
"Globes": How long will First International Bank stay closed?
Elaad: "I wish to express my regrets and to apologize to our customers. I deeply regret the inconvenience. Businesspeople can't obtain documents to release imports, or get their passports from safety deposit boxes.
"I call on the employees to return to work. The strike weapon is sacred; I respect it, but where is the proportionality? You don’t declare a strike when no one is threatening a single employee at the bank in any way."
Employees claim that you're not holding any serious negotiations. Are you really trying to end this dispute?
"There are negotiations, but the workers committees have not come with clean hands. A situation has arisen in which the employees have climbed a high tree, and we won't cause the collapse of the bank by meeting unreasonable demands."
What are the unreasonable demands?
"An example is the demand for a larger bonus. The employees have already received a 5.8% pay raise this year under the deal linking their salaries with those at Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI). They also received a bonus equal to one salary. There has been no bonus at Bank Hapoalim (TASE: POLI); Mizrahi Tefahot Bank (TASE:MZTF) gave a one-month bonus; and Israel Discount Bank (TASE: DSCT) gave a bonus of 1.17 monthly salaries. We've been generous; there's nothing to complain about.
"There is no reason for an employee who earns NIS 300,000 a year, or an authorized signatory who earns NIS 400,000 a year, to go on strike. And do you know what benefits they receive on top of their salaries? The bank pays the tuition up to a masters degree for every child up to the age of 30 of a bank employee. Every child, up to 30, at any university, including the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. There's full job security."
First International Bank's share price rose another 0.5% by mid-afternoon today to NIS 60.01.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 8, 2010
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