VIDEO & PHOTOS: Hadassah Employees Continue Protests

[VIDEO & PHOTOS IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

Hundreds of Hadassah Medical Organization employees continued protesting on Monday, 17 Adar I 5774, taking to the streets of the capital.

During the morning hours several dozen protesters were outside the home of Mayor Nir Barkat. Hundreds gathered in the area of the Cords Bridge close to noon to continue protesting.

While Hadassah Director-General Dr. Avigdor Kaplan called on employees to return to work, it appears they opted to continue protesting, at least on Monday.

Kaplan told Galei Tzahal (Army Radio) on Monday morning that 90% of the money owed to employees for their January 2014 salaries was deposited in their bank accounts, stressing the situation demands returning to work and the negotiating table, not continuing protests. He stressed the need to reach agreement on the outstanding issues to get the hospital on track and to implement a fiscal recovery plan.

Protest in the area of the Jerusalem Cords Bridge

During the early afternoon hours on Monday, employees blocked the offices of senior officials and administers in Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.

In an interview with The Marker Executive Director of the Hadassah’s Women’s Organization in Israel, Audrey Shimron questions why people are looking in their direction. She explains former Hospital Director-General Prof. Shlomo Mor-Yosef “was never given a golden parachute…” and her organization simply was not able to get a realistic picture of the deficit until the accounting firm was replaced.

Shimron sent a clear message of commitment from the women’s organization, but rejects the attitude that Hadassah Women is a “cow to be milked”. She added that the organization has been trying to get a recovery plan in place but the hospital failed to make the necessary decisions.

Ms. Shimron also blames the government, which she states treats Hadassah unfairly regarding funding. She does not seek to absolve the hospital of its responsibilities to get a recovery plan up and running, but she feels the government has its share of responsibility as well.

Talk of making Hadassah a government hospital is a non-starter she explained, stating loud and clear the Hadassah organization is not about to hand over ownership to the Israeli government. “Relating to the Hadassah women as if they don’t understand is very easy, but people don’t grasp that the Hadassah women are professional women — accountants, lawyers, social workers, doctors, businesswomen, women who are soberly realistic and ready to give, to contribute to the State of Israel, but they expect cooperation.”

In the comprehensive interview she expressed disappoint as an Israeli citizen regarding the reaction towards the organization in the United States, which she points out contributes a great deal of money and gets such a tough reaction, the government in inattentive until there is a crisis and then government officials do not focus on the real problem.