Israeli Lawmakers to Forgo Salary Hikes in Show of Solidarity Amid Gaza War, Economic Damage

Members of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, announced on Wednesday that they decided to freeze their own planned pay raises, saying it was not the time for lawmakers to receive a salary bump as the Israeli economy suffered from the ongoing war with the Hamas terror group in Gaza.

“There is no need to justify the obvious: the members’ salaries will not increase during this time,” said Ofir Katz, who chairs the Knesset’s House Committee. Katz added that the salaries would also remain the same for the prime minister, president, judges, and other ministers.

This decision followed the recommendation of the committee that determines salaries and other payments to members of the Knesset, which said, “The difficult war that was imposed on us brings with it severe economic consequences for the entire economy and economic damage to many of the country’s citizens. Under these circumstances, members of the Knesset must set a personal example and forgo the expected increase in their salary.”

Israeli business and outside investment have suffered due to the war, which began with Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel.

The committee responsible for recommending lawmaker wage hikes added: “This decision will also affect employees and former office holders whose wages are received by said office holders and will convey to the public a message of solidarity, responsibility, and values.”

Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana had echoed those sentiments earlier this week in light of the war with Hamas.

“At this time, when the state and many of its citizens are dealing with the economic consequences of the war, just as I worked to cut NIS 80 million [$20.5 million] from the Knesset budget, I think it would be right for Knesset members to also be partners in the economic effort, which should be focused on rehabilitating communities and their residents,” Ohana wrote in a letter to the committee.

The salary hike of 8 percent from the current pay rate of 47,000 NIS (about $12,700) per month was set to go into effect for the lawmakers on Jan. 1 for the 2024 calendar year.

Already above the average Israeli salary of 12,804 NIS per month, the scheduled increase turned some heads as the country has been primarily focused on its wartime budget. Controversy erupted over the recently approved budget, which some members of the Knesset railed against since not all the money was allocated to the war effort. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich backed his budget plan, saying there was enough money at the moment to support military matters and all other areas.

The decision to freeze salary hikes was opposed by some judges, who are the highest paid members of Israel’s governing system, according to Hebrew-language media. The Israeli Supreme Court’s president receives approximately 98,000 NIS per month (about $26,000).

The scheduled pay increases for 2025 will be based on the estimated wage that was supposed to be set for 2024, meaning that lawmakers and members of government will see a double raise in their salaries compared to this year.

Typically, lawmakers have seen annual wage hikes in accordance with average market wage levels. In January 2023, their salaries rose by 5.1 percent after the Knesset was urged to veto a proposed 12.5 percent salary hike amid high inflation and a skyrocketing cost of living. Before then, salaries had been frozen in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

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