During the 19th Knesset the Ministry of Religious Services was under the control of the Bayit Yehudi party. Naftali Bennett was the minister while Deputy Minister of Religious Services Rabbi Eli Ben-Dahan ran the ministry on a day-to-day basis. One of the planned reforms was demanding additional accountability from 300 civil service rabbis in yishuvim by compelling them to document their time. Despite the new regulation, most of the rabbonim did not comply with demands to file a monthly time accountability statement.

In the current Knesset the ministry is under the control of the Shas party and Minister of Religious Services David Azoulai does not agree with the new accountability plan for the rabbis appointed to yishuvim around the country. Bennett and Ben-Dahan are still working to implement this for today, the rabbonim are not required to account for their time in any way, including vacation days used or hours worked. In addition, in violation of the law, some of the municipal rabbis do not live in the city or municipality they serve. Bennett and Ben-Dahan feel a minimal accountability is mandatory since the rabbonim are civil service employees.

According to a report in The Marker released on Sunday 1 Elul, Azoulai and his senior aide David Amar are working to torpedo Bennett and Ben-Dahan’s efforts to demand accountability from the rabbonim regarding their time, compelling them to live in the community they serve and to curtail their private paid hours. The latter refers to the rabbi working in his capacity as a rav for private remuneration. The Marker reports Azoulai informed rabbonim at the end of June that he was going to reevaluate the reforms demanding accountability for one’s time.

Azoulai feels the rabbonim are working with mesirus nefesh and there is no reason to demand they complete monthly time sheets. The minister also backing a petition filed by the Histadrut labor federation and the rabbonim to a labor court challenging the implementation of the new regulations. Azoulai explains the new contract includes “difficult gezeiros” without negotiating the terms of their employment with representatives of the rabbonim in advance.

When asked to comment on The Marker report, a ministry official explained the matter is now being adjudicated in a labor court and therefore it would be improper to respond.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)