Client updates /  Employees

Election Day is a statutory holiday: eligible employees receive their regular wages without using annual leave. Employees who work are customarily paid 200%, subject to applicable workplace arrangements. Employers must allow employees to vote, and special rules apply to non-Israeli citizens in specified sectors.

A legislative amendment updates the maximum amounts employers may deduct from foreign employees’ wages for adequate housing accommodations as of September 1, 2026. The caps vary depending on the type of housing structure and the area in which it is located.

The court’s determinations in the Kovach ruling underscore how important it is for employers to carefully and wisely manage their undertakings to grant Stock Options to employees, especially in startup companies that use options as a key remuneration tool.

On June 21, 2025, the National Emergency Authority defined the term “essential sector” to ensure clarity for the public and employers and to support the continued operation of the essential economy during the emergency.

This morning, June 22, 2025, the Home Front Command’s updated defense policy came into effect. The updated policy has implications for the operation of workplaces throughout Israel.

In light of recent complexities affecting labor relations in Israel, our Employment Department answer key questions such as who may work, from where, who must be paid and when, and who may exceed statutory overtime limits.

In Israel, many employers customarily employ teenagers during the summer vacation. Since the school year is coming to a close, we are recapping highlights of the Youth Employment Law to remind employers about what is permitted and prohibited when employing teenagers.

Employers employing more than 518 employees obligate to prepare two annual reports specifying the gender wage disparities in the workplace, publish publicly and internal.

On April 25, 2025, the public transportation fares were updated in the second phase of the “transportation justice” reform. The new fares may affect the rate of reimbursement of employees’ travel expenses.

The Freeze and Reduction of Convalescence Pay Law was approved in 2025.  As in 2024, employers will be obligated to reduce the convalescence pay payable to their employees and to transfer the reduced sums to the tax assessor, accordingly. The purpose of this law is to redirect these sums for the provision of benefits to reservists.