History in the Knesset: An initiative of Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar-David, Coalition Chairman MK Miki Zohar today (Monday), presented a revolutionary bill that will provide a safety net for the self-employed during an emergency and prevent the next crisis. In recent months, the proposal was formulated in cooperation between Bar-David, MK Zohar, and the Independent Forum in the Histadrut, headed by Rami Beja.
The bill is intended to provide a safety net for the self-employed in emergencies, allow them to exist with dignity, and prevent the business's permanent closure. According to the proposal, the definition of an emergency event includes war, natural disaster, flood, epidemic, or earthquake, which disrupt the routine of life or economic activity. The safety net will be granted to self-employed persons whose income has been harmed, including independent employers and freelancers.
A self-employed person will be able to choose compensation from three tracks: a wage track, a turn over track, and an expense track, similar to the compensation packages given to businesses due to a loss or loss of profit in the Gaza conflict of 2014. The compensation period will be defined as the period of the emergency event or the period during which emergency powers were exercised.
The government will announce the emergency event by the 5th of the following month. If the government does not do so, the Knesset's Economics Committee will be entitled to decide on the matter. The compensation for the first month will be paid within 15 days from declaring the emergency event.
Until the payment date, the self-employed person will be entitled to a minimum subsistence allowance equal to his average income, as reported to the National Insurance Institute in the three months preceding the emergency event, but not less than the minimum wage.
Histadrut Chairman Arnon Bar-David: "This is a historic day, and I would like to thank MK Miki Zohar and the Independents Forum for their cooperation in preparing this important bill. The self-employed are no different from the employees, and they deserve social security. In this state of emergency and the deep crisis we are in, the economically affected self-employed do not have to go out to demonstrate or set up tents to get what they deserve. It is our moral and civic duty to take care of the independent population. In the State of Israel, there are no stepchildren, and citizens should have equal rights."
Coalition Chairman MK Miki Zohar: "After last week I submitted the Unemployment Benefits Bill for the Self-Employed, this bill is closing the circle and completing the task of all of us to prevent the next crisis. The Self-Employed Safety Networks Bill will prevent unnecessary chaos as we have experienced during the Corona Virus crisis. Following the courageous partnership formed between Histadrut chairman Arnon Bar-David and me, and our joint work with the Histadrut's Independent Forum, we were able to promote such important bills to the independent public and small businesses in the State of Israel."
Chairman of the Histadrut's Independent Forum, Rami Beja: "I would like to thank the Chairman of the Histadrut for his decision to promote a value-based worldview and a corrective move to move the economy. In light of the tens of thousands of businesses that have closed and many more self-employed people expected to join the circle of bankruptcy, this historic bill is pure Zionism."
from right to left: Bar David, Zohar, Beja
