Ten trade unions have accused "Israel" of violating international labor laws by withholding pay and benefits from over 200,000 Palestinian workers since October 7. The Israeli government is charged with “blatant” breaches of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) protection of wages convention, pushing many Palestinians into severe poverty.

Palestinian workers from Gaza and the West Bank, who were employed in "Israel", have not been paid for work done before October, nor have they received wages since. This comes amid the Israeli aggression on Gaza, which has thus far killed over 41,000 Palestinians and caused mass destruction.

A complaint, filed on Friday, seeks to recover unpaid wages for Palestinian workers formerly employed in "Israel".

“Two hundred thousand workers in the West Bank lost their jobs,” said Assaf Adiv, executive director of the Maan Workers Association, an independent organization in "Israel". 

“They did not receive any compensation and have been suffering ever since from extreme poverty. Thousands of workers who risk entering Israel without permits face repression, humiliation, and even death. Workers are a major social layer in Palestinian society ......... thus should not be punished,” Adiv added.

According to the ILO, Palestinian workers in "Israel" earned an average daily wage of 297.30 shekels ($79), with weekly wages ranging from 2,100-2,600 shekels ($565-$700). Following Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, "Israel" revoked work permits for around 13,000 Palestinian workers from Gaza, leaving them with unpaid wages from September and October that would have typically been paid on October 9.

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Nearly 200,000 Palestinian workers from the occupied West Bank, employed in "Israel", have been barred from entering the country and have not received any termination notices, according to a legal brief. The unions argue that these workers are owed wages as stipulated by their employment contracts for both prior work and the months since.

The unions accuse "Israel" of violating the ILO's Protection of Wages Convention which Tel Aviv ratified in 1959.

An ILO report from May noted that since October 7, Palestinian unemployment has reached unprecedented levels. "Economic production losses across the Occupied Palestinian Territory are estimated at almost US$19 million per day," the report stated.

Khaled Jamal Muhammad Karkash, a Palestinian worker, described the hardships since the beginning of the war, saying, “When the war started, we returned home during the initial phase of the conflict. Since then, we haven’t received any salaries or found any work. I’m the breadwinner for my family. No one else is working at home.”

Mahmoud Salhab, another Palestinian worker, has been unable to return to his job in the occupied territory since October. "I’m the primary breadwinner, and I have a four-year degree, yet I can’t find a job," he said. "Since the first war, I’ve only been working four days a month, just enough to cover basic necessities like bread and oil. I was engaged before the war, but now I can’t afford to get married or finish building my house.”

According to the ILO, over 500,000 jobs have been lost in Gaza and the West Bank, worsening the already dire economic situation under the Israeli occupation. In March, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Mustafa stated that unemployment had reached 89%.

Luc Triangle, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, highlighted the impact on families. "When I visited the West Bank earlier this year, I witnessed the economic destitution experienced by the families of Palestinian workers employed in Israel. As always, working people are enduring the worst of the continuing conflict. Through this petition, we want to ensure that the much-needed back pay is provided to workers struggling to survive," he said.

The unions behind the complaint represent around 207 million workers globally, including organizations such as the Building and Wood Workers’ International, Education International, the International Transport Workers’ Federation, and the International Federation of Journalists. The Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also signed the complaint.

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