Happy Hanukka! Government approves 50% pay raise for IDF soldiers

Combat soldiers will see their pay rise from NIS 1,080 per month to NIS 1,620 per month.

By DANA SOMBERG/MAARIV HASHAVUA
Updated: DECEMBER 7, 2015 01:21
Government approves 50% pay raise for IDF soldiers
The government in a unanimous vote on Sunday approved a 50 percent pay increase for conscripted soldiers. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the raise would go into effect this month, and promised further increases in the future.
Under the new pay scale, combat soldiers will receive 1,616 shekels per month, as opposed to their current salaries of 1,077 shekels, and combat support soldiers will receive 1,176 shekels, up from 784 shekels. Other soldiers will receive an increase to 810 shekels from 540 shekels.
“Ultimately, we live here due to our ability to defend ourselves, which is provided by IDF soldiers, and I’m glad there is an agreement here among the ministers of finance, defense and myself,” Netanyahu said at the weekly government meeting.
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, who placed the proposal for a pay increase on the table, said the raise represents “the fixing of an injustice that has occurred over many years.”
He added that the parents of soldiers should know that “[just] as commanders watch over and protect the security of the soldiers, we as a government take care of their needs. This is still not enough, but we are in the [right] direction. The step taken is significant.”
The Finance Ministry also will allocate 600 million shekels a year to improve the living conditions of conscripted soldiers under the proposal.