Thousands of Palestinians employed in Israel went on a one-day strike Aug. 21, in protest against a decision to pay their salaries into Palestinian bank accounts.
Generally, Palestinian workers, most of whom work for contruction companies, receive net salaries in cash. The construction companies are required to report to the Israel Population and Immigration Authority the number of days and hours each worker has labored, for his health care and pension charges to be calculated and paid for. Still, many workers have complained over the years that they did not get paid in full, or that the reports about their working hours were inaccurate. This system has another drawback as it forced employers to go around with huge sums of cash in order to pay their employees’ salaries.
