BREAKING NEWS

Workers to get two more vacation days per year

Legislation giving employees two more vacation days each year was expected to pass a final vote on Monday.
The 1951 Yearly Vacation Law said the minimum annual vacation time was 10 days, and the number would increase after five years seniority at a single workplace, to up to 28 days after 14 years of working for the same employer.
According to the amended law, proposed by MK Rachel Azaria, employees will get 12 vacation days per year. In their sixth year at a workplace, they will get 14, then jump to 21 days in their seventh year, and get one more day off per year until they reach 28 days.
Azaria explained how the original law was passed at a time when people spent most of their adulthood at the same workplace, and her bill updated the law to match the current job market, in which many people switch employers every three to four years and therefore often don’t get past 10 vacation days.
This situation makes it difficult for parents to arrange care for their children, who have many more days off than they do.
“A million and a half workers constantly don’t have enough vacation days, and they work more days and hours than any other OECD country,” Azaria said, in presenting the bill.
“Adding two vacation days is very significant for them and will give them the extra free time we all need.”
Most OECD countries give workers a minimum of three to four weeks off.
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon said he backed the measure as “an important step towards closing gaps among workers.”