The battle heats up: Suspicion of illegal transfer of public funds to the Teachers' Union

The Ministry of Education announced today, Tuesday, that it has opened an investigation into suspicions that public funds were illegally transferred to the Teachers' Union, following reports of individuals allegedly added as members of the organization despite not being teachers.

In a letter sent by Minister Yoav Kisch to teachers who are members of the organization, following a message sent to them yesterday by Chairman Ran Erez, Kisch addressed the "claims and personal smears" directed at him. He referred to the personal campaigns Erez conducted against him, funded by millions of shekels from the organization's funds and teachers' membership fees. Kisch clarified that he has instructed the ministry's professional staff to prepare for a change in the mechanism for transferring funds to the organization.

According to the planned outline, future transfers will be carried out in a transparent and controlled manner directly through each teacher's pay slip. In his letter, the minister added:

"No personal campaign will cause me to ignore the concern for damage to public funds. I will continue to fulfill my public duty without fear and without extraneous considerations."

Earlier this month, Erez attacked and threatened a strike to protest the fact that teachers did not receive pay for the day of escalation with Iran, during which the system did not operate. Although Erez made harsh comments about the minister, it should be emphasized that three days later, agreements were reached and the strike threat was removed.

The Minister of Education's office stated in response at the time:

"After more than 30 years of Ran Erez at the head of the Teachers' Union, it is difficult to point to one significant achievement he has attained for the teachers. His main legacy is threats, recycling headlines, and strikes. He has turned Israel's students into hostages in his personal struggles, while causing severe damage to the entire education system."

It was further stated: "On the night of the last attack in Iran, the Home Front Command announced there would be no classes the next day. The Minister of Education determined unequivocally that it is not appropriate to demand that teachers switch to remote learning with only a few hours' notice. The directive regarding the salary deduction is not from the Ministry of Education but from the Ministry of Finance, and it contradicts the position of the Minister of Education, who supports the teachers' position. The issue will be decided in court. Any attempt to shut down the education system will be met with an immediate appeal to the Labor Court, as there is a signed and binding wage agreement between the parties."