A WIN-WIN solution to the teachers' strike 2007

Click here for more on compulsory arbitration

October 11, 2007

Today's lesson

Maurice Ostroff

Sir, Re "Teachers begin wide-scale strike" (October 10): It would be hugely in the public interest if the teachers dispute were to be submitted to voluntary mediation, followed by arbitration if mediation fails. The obvious benefit would be that teachers and school kids could then carry on with their programs in the knowledge that the issues are receiving close attention.

As both sides have valid points of view, both should welcome the intervention of a neutral arbitrator who will weigh their arguments in conditions where hopefully less heat and more light will be generated. An agreement both parties can live with, even if not considered ideal by either party, is obviously better than an agreement arrived at under coercion of a strike.

Neither party need fear it won't be treated fairly, as each side will choose its mediator or arbitrator; only if the two arbitrators could not arrive at a solution, would they submit the decision to a third umpire satisfactory to both parties.
The choice of mediators or arbitrators need not be confined to Israelis.

The idea is not novel.

Compulsory arbitration before a shrike can take place affecting public services is successfully adopted in other countries. (See https://topical-comments.tripod.com/id12.html)

MAURICE OSTROFF
Herzliya

A typical response

Jerusalem Post October 14, 2007

To the editor
Jerusalem Post

The Teachers' Strike

Sir, - As a means of preventing the unforgivable crime of depriving our kids of even a few days, let alone months of sorely needed schooling, as well as depriving the teachers of their salaries, Maurice Ostroff's suggestion to arbitrate is a truly sensible approach to achieving a fair solution. ("Today's lesson," Letters, October 11). I do not know how to go about it, but if any reader is able to organize an internet petition urging the treasury and the teachers union to adopt his proposal, I am sure thousands would be anxious to sign it.

BRENDA COHEN
Tel Aviv

JERUSALEM POST Editorial Oct. 21, 2007

Fewer strikes, more reform

As yet another reminder of the weakness and unpopularity of our current government, the senior university lecturers have gone on strike. Why not attempt to hop on to the bandwagon of the general bemoaning of the quality of our educational system, the disturbing evidence of a "brain-drain" from our universities, and the ongoing high school teachers strike?

We are extremely sympathetic to the plight of teachers and share the concern over the woes of our schools. But perhaps most disturbing of all is that tens of thousands of high school students are missing day after day of school, and no one seems to care.

Things would be much simpler if we had some confidence that, simply by filling the demands of striking teachers, the system would be fixed. But even if salaries were raised, would our children get a better education? Would there even be fewer strikes?

Strikes are part of the problem, not the solution. As if it were not enough that classes are too large, that the best teachers and principals are not rewarded, that there is almost no competition between schools - now these strikes directly deprive students even of the basic educational good of an uninterrupted school year.

The answer is more reform and fewer strikes. One good idea that remains no less valid even though it has been proposed unsuccessfully for many years is requiring unions to enter into a mediation process, or even into a binding arbitration arrangement.

The agreements that emerge from such an arbitration process may not be ideal, but neither are those that follow crippling strikes. A system that does a reasonable job of reconciling the different sides and spares the public the high cost of strikes would be a great improvement over the status quo.

Since 1960 various Knesset members have been introducing private compulsory arbitration bills in the Knesset. The Likud pledged in its 1976 election platform to pursue legislation requiring binding arbitration of labor disputes.

In South Korea, the law prohibits strikes affecting essential public services unless mediation or arbitration has been attempted first. In Norway, a nurses strike was ended when the parliament passed a law requiring such binding arbitration.

Another sensible measure is to require that unions hold a secret vote among their members before the union leaders call a strike. The members may very well agree with their leadership in many instances, but such a measure would avoid the situation of a union leaderships "proving themselves" through strikes, even when they are opposed by a majority of union members.

These are important stopgap measures that should be instituted immediately, before more fundamental reforms are pursued. Just as strikes will not solve underlying problems, neither will their elimination by way of procedural and legal changes.

It is no coincidence that essentially all nationwide strikes are of government workers or in government-dominated industries and enterprises. This is both because conditions in government service are poor compared to the private sector and because the government is protected from competitive pressures.

Privatization is no panacea, since monopolies and overconcentration in particular markets can produce similar effects. Competition, moreover, can be introduced even under a government regulatory umbrella. But there is no substitute for competition in producing greater efficiency along with higher quality for consumers, more opportunities and better conditions for workers.

Few sectors of our society are more concentrated in government hands and more centralized than the educational system. Study after study has shown that great schools are run by great principals, and that principals need the authority to hire and fire and to reward merit. Principals, by the same token, need to know that parents have a choice of where to send their children, and that merit - or lack of it - will have effects at their level, too.

Teachers unions that resist such reforms are hurting their members because the only hope for raising the status and conditions of the teaching profession is to raise the quality of the educational system. More importantly, it is the only hope to produce schools that better educate our children. Isn't that what all of this is supposed to be about?

HAARETZ 25/10/07
English and Hebrew editions

Arbitration before strikes

Maurice Ostroff

As a volunteer from abroad, who participated in the War of Independence and who dearly loves this county, my only regret is the inferior education my grandchildren are receiving. Their cousins in Australia and Canada are receiving a greatly superior education, not only in secular matters but also in basic Yiddishkeit.

Keeping the kids out of school, is absolutely SINFUL. So too is depriving the teachers of their salaries,

There is however, a fair and practical solution to end the present strikes, with benefit to all parties. The dispute must be submitted to arbitration so that the teachers can go back to work in the knowledge that their case is being competently and sympathetically presented by an arbitrator of their choice

Neither party need fear it won't be treated fairly, as each will choose its arbitrator. If the arbitrators don't agree on a solution, they will submit the decision to an umpire. The choice of arbitrators need not be confined to Israelis.

As both sides have valid points of view, both should welcome the intervention of a neutral arbitrator who will weigh their arguments in conditions where hopefully less heat and more light will be generated. An agreement both parties can live with, even if not considered ideal by either party, is obviously better than an agreement arrived at under coercion of a strike.

In fact, arbitration should be compulsory when any strike threatens national services. It would go a long way to prevent the perennial crippling strikes to which we are subjected. The concept is very practical. Israel cannot afford to be too proud to learn from the experience of other countries where compulsory arbitration legislation has been successfully introduced.

Southern Korean labor law makes special provision for ensuring continuity of public services. Any form of industrial action affecting essential public services whose stoppages and discontinuity undermine the national economy may not take place before prescribed steps have been taken including "mediation" and "arbitration".

A few years ago, during a nurses' strike, the Norwegian Board of Health considered a potential threat to national health to be intolerable and the Norwegian government promptly asked its parliament to pass compulsory arbitration legislation to end the strike. The strike ended immediately.

An essential requirement before any strike can be called should be a secret vote by union members.

The concept is not new to Israel. Since 1960 various Knesset members have been introducing private compulsory arbitration bills in the Knesset. The Likud included in its 1976 election manifesto an undertaking to introduce compulsory arbitration of labor disputes.

Incidentally, arbitration was originally introduced in the Talmud? It is called "Zabla Ve-Zabla" - acronym for "Ze borer lo echad ve-ze borer lo echad". Literally: "This one selects one for himself and this one selects one for himself". All civil cases and private disputes in Jewish Law were taken to a court of three, where each side chose one "judge" or arbitrator, and the two representatives agreed on a third "judge" to preside over the Beit-Din.

Maurice Ostroff

בוררות לפני השבתה

כמי שהשתתף במלחמת השחרור כמתנדב מחו"ל וכאוהב מושבע של הארץ, אני מצטער כיום שהבאתי את ילדי לישראל בגלל החינוך הנחות שמקבלים כאן נכדי. בני דודיהם מקבלים באוסטרליה ובקנדה חינוך הרבה יותר טוב, לא רק בנושאים כלליים אלא גם ביהדות.

הרחקת הילדים מבתי הספר, המושבתים, גובלת ממש בפשע. כך גם מניעת משכורות מהמורים.

אך יש פתרון הוגן ומעשי לסיום השביתה, המציע יתרונות לכל הצדדים. יש לדון בסכסוך במסגרת בוררות, כך שהמורים יוכלו לחזור לעבודתם בידיעה ברורה שתביעותיהם יהיו מיוצגות באופן יעיל ואוהד על ידי הבורר שיבחרו לעצמם - שני בוררים, אחד לכל צד, ידונו בחילוקי הדעות. אם לא יסכימו על פתרון, ייבחר בורר שלישי, שיכריע ביניהם.

הבוררות צריכה להיות חובה כאשר שביתה כלשהי עלולה לאיים על שירותים ברמה הלאומית. ישראל יכולה ללמוד מניסיונן של מדינות אחרות שבהן נחקקה בהצלחה חובה כזאת. חוקי העבודה בדרום קוריאה קובעים שכל סוג של סכסוך עבודה העלול להשפיע על שירותים ציבוריים חיוניים אינו יכול להגיע לשביתה לפני שיינקטו צעדים קבועים בחוק, כולל "תיווך" ו"בוררות".

לפני כמה שנים, במהלך שביתת אחיות, קבע ארגון הבריאות הנורווגי שהסיכון הפוטנציאלי לבריאות הציבור הוא בלתי נסבל, וממשלת נורווגיה פנתה מיד לפרלמנט בבקשה לחוקק חוק לבוררות חובה כדי לסיים את השביתה. השביתה הסתיימה באופן מיידי.

הרעיון אינו חדש בישראל. מאז 1960 הגישו ח"כים שונים הצעות חוק פרטיות לבוררות חובה.

מוריס אוסטרוף

הרצליה