Following a labor dispute lasting many months and several strikes, workers at the Migada plant in Kiryat Shmona and management of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) today signed a collective labor agreement.
Teva put the Migada plant up for sale as part of its streamlining program. The plant is not part of Teva's core business; it manufactures a closed system for protection of medical teams.
The agreement signed today settles the employment terms and wages of Migada's workers after the plant is sold. As reported by "Globes," FIMI Fund, led by Ishay Davidi, is conducting exclusive negotiations to acquire the Migada plant from Teva.
An announcement by the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor in Israel), which represents the Migada workers, states: "To the satisfaction of the parties and with full cooperation, an agreement was signed ensuring that the rights of the plant's 170 workers would be fully preserved. They will receive an option for a three-year employment safety net." The parties agreed that all the workers' rights would be preserved when the plant is sold, including the collective agreements and all of the arrangements prevailing at the time of the sale. Each worker will receive a bonus of up to NIS 60,000 when the sale takes place, according to seniority, amounting to a total of NIS 5.4 million.
Workers who resign or who are laid off by management up until September 2019 will be entitled to up to 175% severance pay. Veteran employees taking early retirement will also be entitled to increased severance pay in accordance with seniority. For example, workers over 50 will be entitled to a bonus of nine months' salary, while workers over 50 with 10 years of seniority will be entitled to an additional three months' salary. Workers laid off by the new management will receive an "outlying areas bonus" of NIS 5,000-50,000, according to seniority.
The collective agreement also states that all workers will receive an annual 3% pay hike for three years - a 9% pay rise over the three years of the agreement. All of the workers will be entitled to a bonus from Teva for 2018, even if they continue working for the new employer.
"We succeeded in saving the workers' jobs, and we even improved the employment terms," said Histadrut Galilee region chairperson Yona Partok. Workers' committee chairperson Alon Mizrahi added, "After a difficult time, we can breathe freely, and hail the agreement, which benefits all of the workers."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on February 5, 2019
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