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The cuts, as reported by Channel 10 on Tuesday evening, will result in the cancellation of weekly school hours for all grades—from elementary school through middle school and high school—which would help save NIS 500 million.
The remaining NIS 500 million will be cut from the Education Ministry's budget. In addition to the teachers, at-risk youth are also expected to pay the price of the cuts, as the program aimed at dealing with drop-outs will suffer budget cuts.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett's office has declined to comment on the planned cuts and their ramifications.
Officials in the Education Ministry, however, attempted to allay the fears. "There's a plan for budget cuts in all government ministries. It doesn't necessarily mean teachers will be fired; we can make cuts in other places. The Education Ministry has a budget of NIS 53 billion a year and we can also cut instead from special needs education, school buses, teacher's assistants, and in other areas. We still don't know where the cuts will be made. We're negotiating with the Finance Ministry."
The officials added that "firing teachers is the most complicated action we can take, as teachers have a lot of protection and their unions would object."
Yossi Wasserman, the chairman of the Israel Teachers' Union, said on Tuesday: "Under no circumstance will we accept or allow the firing of teachers. The education system needs support and an upgrade, not cuts and dismissals."
In addition to the cuts to the education system, the Finance Ministry is planning on cutting some NIS 100 million from higher education.
"The Finance Ministry is working to improve and streamline the education system," the ministry said in a statement. "The Education Ministry's budget has increased by a significant percentage in recent years and is expected to grow this year as well. The claims that teachers would be fired are baseless."
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4839819,00.html
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