BICOM

Representatives of the Israeli Finance Ministry and medical residents’ representatives have signed an agreement to end a nine-month dispute that has brought Israel’s public health system close to crisis. The dispute centred on the difficult conditions and very demanding workload imposed on medical residents in Israel.

According to the agreement, all medical residents will now receive a grant of NIS 60,000, which will be received in two stages. Residents are now also to receive a higher rate of pay for evening and night shifts and will receive a vacation day in return for working weekends. Weekends and night shifts are part of the routine of medical residents in Israel, who are also expected to study in their chosen field of specialisation while dealing with a heavy workload. Residents sometimes work shifts as long as 26 hours.

In total, 269 representatives of the residents voted in favour of the agreement, while 163 voted against.