Special ways to hand out payslips

In the past I have been asked many times whether sending a payslip via email or posting it on a website is legal. It never reached the court system for a ruling, but the lawmakers, realizing the advances in technology, addressed the issue by updating a new statute in the protection of salary law.

On July 26, 2017 a new statute was added to the protection of salary law (special ways to hand out payslips) was publicized in the records thus making it officially part of the law. The statute states:

An employer may hand out payslips by one or more of the following special ways detailed below, in place of printed payslips;

    1. Via secure internet site on the employer’s behalf * to which an employee may access with initial password supplied by the employer, whereby the employee can view his payslip.

    * An “internet site on the employer’s behalf” is a site that serves the employer and the following two conditions are met:
    A. Allows access to the data saved on it after the employee has been personally identified.
    B. Protective measures are taken, on a regular basis, against unauthorized penetration and disruption of proper useage.

    2. Sending the employee’s payslip to an email address provided by the employer (work email) via an email program.

    3. Sending the employee’s payslip to the employee’s private email address.

      The conditions under which this statute apply are:

    1. The employee agrees and signs written consent to waive receipt of printed payslip via waiver form (see below).

    2. The payslip can be printed at anytime in the future upon demand.

    An employee can retract this consent at any time in the future, in writting, including email notification and the employer will act accordingly from the month after the notification is received.

    The payslip, issued in one of the above special methods, the following directives shall apply:

    1. Issuing the payslip will be done by the determined date (the date salaries are deposited in the bank).

    2. In case of sending payslip to the employee’s personal email address – the employee shall acknowledge receipt, in writting (reply email) shortly after receiving the payslip, and no later than 5 days after the determined date, that
    he has received the payslip.

    3. An employer who has not received email confirmation from an employee acknowledging receipt of the payslip within 5 days of the determined date will issue a printed payslip no later than 10 days after the determined date.

    An employer who issues the employee’s payslip in one of the special ways described above will enable the employee to receive a printed payslip, upon request, for a period of no less than 7 years from the determined date for supplying the employee a payslip according to law.

    An employer who issues payslips via secure internet site, via employee access with password shall allow access to payslips for a minimum period of 12 months from the determined date for supplying the employee a payslip according to law.

    The employer is required to take protective measures that will not allow changes to the payslips that are issued according to this statute.

    The following is an English language wording of the form that needs to be signed by the employee. Note this a legal document and the employer should keep the signed form in the employee’s file.

    Form of consent to receive payslips via electronic media

    Part A

Employee’s name ____________________ Israeli I.D. # ________________________

Name of employer _____________________ Place of work (location) _____________________________

Email address to which payslips will be sent or address of employer’s site to which payslips will be accessable ______________________________________

Employee will choose the method he prefers and check the applicable box accordingly.

I, the undersigned whose details appear above hereby give my consent to receive my payslip for my work in the manner specified below and I am aware that by doing so I waive my right to receive a printed payslip on the determined date according to the law, however I will retain access to the payslip according to statute 3 (A)

[ ] 1. Sent to my email address in the employer’s email system as listed above.

[ ] 2. Via a secure website on the employer’s behalf, accessable by personal password. The site address and password have been provided to me by the employer.

[ ] 3. Sent to my personal email address as listed above.

Note: the employer may erase two of the three options above allowing only one of the options, but he may not erase option 4 below !!

[ ] 4. I, the undersigned whose details appear above do not agree to receive my payslip for my work via electronic methods in any of the 3 options above. I hereby request receipt of a printed payslip each month by the determined date according to the law.

    Part B

This section is to be filled out and signed by the employee only when option 3 above has been chosen as the method in which the employee will receive his payslip.

1. The private email address above has been given to the employer by me and with my consent. I hereby state that this email address is in my own personal use.

Employee’s signature ________________________________ Date __________________________

I have chosen the option to receive my payslip via my personal email address (option # 3), my consent to receive my payslip via this option is with my understanding of all of the following:

1. I am aware that external email systems and accounts are not under the employer’s control.

2. Receiving this form to fill out and sign is the employer’s obligation to take all reasonable measures to ensure that access to my payslips and viewing the information on them will be done soley by me, or with my permission, and at the least the employer has taken measures for encoding the data in order to protect my privacy.

3. Despite the above, I am aware of all of the following:
A. I agree that my payslips be sent to an external email system and the data may be exposed to third parties, amongst them the service provider of the external email service.
B. There is no guarantee that the external email system contains protective measures from hackers, unapproved access and disruption of functionality.
C. It is possible that the data will be lost, not be saved or will not reach the desired destination due to circumstances that are not under the employer’s control.
D. It is possible that the data is stored outside of the borders of the country of Israel and this may have an impact on my rights regarding the usage of the data.
E. I am aware that it is highly recommended that I personally save and backup the payslips that are sent to me via this option.
F. This consent of mine is in effect from now on and until further written notification by me that I have rescinded my consent.

Employee’s signature ________________________________ Date __________________________

Note: This is not legal advice, nor is it meant to be. The purpose of this post is to enhance employee and employer awareness to this addition to the protection of salary law.
The wording is my own and not a literal translation. In any case of contradiction between this post and the law, obviously the wording of the law applies. Employers may use the wording of the above by copying the wording into a word document.

The right to an hour off work/day when spouse is in active reserve army duty

IDF soldiers in action
The women’s employment law was updated on July 3, 2017 (correction 58). Accordingly, an employee will be eligible to be absent from work for one hour per day during the period of time when their spouse is in active reserve duty (miluim) in the I.D.F. under the following circumstances:

1. The period of the spouse’s active reserve duty is no less than five consecutive days.

2. The employee has at least one child under age 13.

3. The employee is employed in a full-time position as accepted in place of employment.

4. The employee notified the employer of the intent to utilize this right and presents the employer with a copy of the spouse’s proof of actual active reserve duty.

The above applies to men and women.
Payment for above hours are not to be deducted from salary.
This does not apply to employees who are eligible for paid parent (breast feeding) hours or pregnancy hours.

Prevention of discrimination in acceptance to a job

It is forbidden by law to discriminate against candidates for employment or against employees due to gender, age, religion, nationailty, country of origin, political beliefs. The equal employment opportunities law (1988) requires employers to pick out only relevant information about the candidates for the position they are looking to fill. If anyone is discriminated against they can contact the Equal opportunities commission for initial legal consultation. If the commission feels a case is justified they may take legal action against the offending employer. People who feel they were discrimated against may file a suit in labor court. The Equal opportunities commission contact information is:
The Equal opportunities commission נציבות שוויון
Address: 5 Bank of Israel st. Govt. quarter, Jerusalem כתובת: בנק ישראל 5, קריית הממשלה, ירושלים
Mailing address: P.O. Box 3166 Jerusalem 9103101 ת.ד. 3166, מיקוד
Tel: Tel-Aviv טלפון: ת”א – 03-7347215
Jerusalem ירושלים 02-6662367, 02-6662780
Haifa חיפה – 04-8613902/1
National commission נציבות ארצית – 02-6662701
Email: shivion@Economy.gov.il :דואר אלקטרוני

    Want ads

      A good want ad is one that describes the position and the requirements the employer seeks and encourages job seekers to apply for the position. When an employer places a want ad for a position. It is supposed to give the professional backround required while appealing to the widest range of potential candidates. the language and wording used, as well as any illustrations should reflect this. Avoid using language or wording that applies to one gender, a specific age group, color, ethnic backround, religion, nationality or residents of a certain area(s). Also avoid direct discrimination, such as “wanted: good looking men” or “looking for young woman”. Avoid circumventive discrimination, such as if a postion requires very little verbal communication do not write in the ad “high level command of Hebrew required”.

    Job interviews

Not all questions are legal in a job interview. Personal questions such as “are you pregnant?”, “Do you intend on having more children?”, Aren’t you too old for this job?”, “do you smoke?” are totally illegal and also irrelevant. Employees who are asked illegal questions that do not relate to previous experience and knowledge should be met with a smile and “This question has nothing to do with the position, let’s please keep this interview professional.”
Questions regarding a candidate’s army service or National service – or lack of either, or whether they serve in reserves, what their rank is are also prohibited.
Employers are advised to have more than one interviewer present at job interviews and if possible should be representative of different groups of the population which will usually drastically reduce the chance of any discrimination occurring. Remember that as much as you are screening candidates, they are screening you as well. Keep it professional.

In cases where a candidate feels he/she was discriminated against, it is advisable to consult first with the commission and if necessary with a lawyer who specializes in labor law.

Employers – 6 simple rules to follow and substantially illiminate law suits by employees

From our years of experience, it is very clear that employers who follow these six simple rules (which just happen to be labor laws and regulations that are mandatory for all empployers, in both public and private sectors, in Israel) will reduce drastically the number of suits by employees and former employees. Most of the lawsuits filed in recent years deal with these issues. They are really simple to adhere to and can save you literally time and money.

1. Sign all new employees, within 30 days of their start date (or within 7 days of start date if they are under 18 years of age), on a notification of employment conditions or a contract. This should be done prior to starting to work, or first thing on the first day of work along with other technical things like filling out 101 tax form, issuing a time card, etc
If you use a contract it must contain all of the information on the notification of employment terms form, which is downloadable here:
http://economy.gov.il/Employment/WorkRights/WorkingRelationshipsCreation/Pages/WorkingConditionsNotification
This will illiminate any disputes regarding terms of employment of employees and possible monetary lawsuits for failure to provide this for sums of up to 15,000 sh without need to prove any damage.
A new notification needs to be issued any time that any of the mandatory details change.

2. Make sure all employees have received their salary, payslip and time-sheet by the 9th of the month following the month of salary being paid (For example: June salary – by July 9th). Make sure the payslip is itemized and clear and includes all mandatory information required by law. Eliminate future lawsuits for up to 5,000 sh for each payslip, without need to prove damge. Failure to provide a time-sheet can result in lawsuits for overtime pay and a fine for each month for each employee by the regulation dept of the Ministry of Economics.

3. Do not fire an employee before correctly holding a preliminary hearing according to protocol and avoid lawsuits of tens of thousands of shekels for Illegal termination.

4. Keep track of all employee’s sick days and vacation days balances to avoid unnecessary disputes during employment and possible monetary lawsuits for failure to do so.

5. Insure your employees with mandatory pension plan after six month’s tenure, if they dont have a previous pension plan, or after three month’s tenure if they do have a previous pension plan – in which case its retroactive to the employee’s start date.

6. The more you are transparent with your payslips: itemizing each payment separately and clearly it will be easier understood and avoid any unnecessary disagreemtns and future lawsuits.

Israpay has over 20 years experience in implementation, setup and fine-tuning payroll programs and we will be happy to assist you in ensuring you comply with all the labor laws, regulations and statuary instructions. Get in touch today and see how we can help you save time and money !

Everything you wanted to know about Financial sanctions to employers

dollar stacks

The second addition of the Increasement of regulation law empowers the Ministry of Economics, Department of regulation of labor laws to impose financial sanctions on employers who are found in violation of labor laws, such as minimum wage, sexual harassment, failure to supply an employee with notification of terms of employment, etc.
The infringements are divided into three categories of financial sanctions with a distinction made between an employer who is not a business and a business:

Level Business Non-Business
level one ₪5,110 ₪2,550
level two ₪20,420 ₪10,210
level three ₪35,740 ₪17,870

A complete list of the infractions and which level they are assigned to is on the Ministry’s website: http://www.economy.gov.il/Employment/WorkRights/WorkRightsEnforcement/Pages/FinancialSanctionSums

The Ministry of economics can file a suit against the employer in court, which if convicted, is a criminal offense! The names and details of the employers who were fined are listed on the Ministry of Economics website.
To help avoid these situations it is recommended to consult with a payroll expert like Israpay who can help employers fine-tune their payroll practices, payslips, etc according to the law. Get in touch today !

Before you apply for a job – must read !!!!

You decide to apply for a job, or better yet, you applied and were invited to an job interview. Wait a second, not so fast !!!
The Ministry of Labor and social affairs within the Ministry of Economics has a list of employers that you are not going to want to miss reading prior to applying for a job with one of them.
This list is a list of offenders of labor laws that were fined by the department of regulation, who do spot checks on employers as well as acting on tips and complaints from the general public.
The full list can be seen here:
http://www.economy.gov.il/Employment/WorkRights/WorkRightsEnforcement/FinancialSanctions/Pages/default.aspx

Tax credit point update (Kachlon law) June 2017

The Israel Tax Authority published a new directive to employers on May 28, 2017 regarding tax credit points to parents of children who are salaried employees via their payslip.
1. The number of tax credit points will now be equal for men and women. All parents are now eligible for 1.5 tax credit points in the year their child is born and 2.5 tax credit points in the years the child is age 1 to age 5.
2. This directive is effective for the tax years 2017 and 2018 only (from Jan 2019 it is cancelled, unless an extension is approved by the government).
3. Effective in June 2017 salary (to be paid by July 9, 2107), employers will credit their employees to whom this applies with the additional tax credit points, retroactive to January 2017.
For women: In the year the child is born you will receive 1.5 tax credit points (instead of 0.5 up until now) and in the years the child’s age is 1-5 you will get 2.5 tax credit points (instead of 2 up until now). You can elect to defer 1 tax credit point of the 1.5 allotted for each child to the following tax year (2018). This is done by filling out a 116 D tax form and giving it to your employer (HR or salary dept). You will need to also fill out this form in 2018 (section dalet).
Men do not have this option of deferring tax credit points.
For men: In the year the child is born you will receive 1.5 tax credit points (instead of 1 up until now). In the years the child’s age is 1-2 you will receive 2.5 tax credit points (instead of 2 up until now) and in the year the child’s age is 3 you will receive 2.5 tax credit points (instead of 1 up until now) and in the years the child’s age is 4-5 you will receive 2.5 tax credit points (instead of none up until now).
This will lower taxes on working parents salaries and raise their net pay. The tax credit points are monthly.
Employers: you need to keep this form 116 D with the employee’s 101 tax form.

July 2016 updates

Effective in July 2016’s payroll there will come into effect several changes in labor laws:
1.  Mandatory pension law

Correction 12 to this law was updated, adding 1% to employee and employer pension plan contributions in a two step update: 1/2% in July 2016 and another 1/2% in jan 2017.
The current update (July 2016) % are now Employee 5.75% and Employer 6%.
This effects all employers in Israel in all sectors by way of a comprehensive ordinance signed by the Minister of Economy. The only exceptions are if the exsisting % are higher (due to a collective agreement or personal contract) or if an employee has a Bituach Menahalim plan or pension plan with lower rates but the employer contributes to a loss of work ability insurance (IWA), whereas the joint % of the Bituach Menahalim and lWA insurance is equal to or higher than 6%. In this case, only the employee’s contribution will increase, as the employer is already contributing at the new % or more.
For comparison, here is a breakdown of pre-change and after:

 

payroll Employee contribution Employer contribution Severance pay (employer) Total
Jan 2016 5.5%    6% 6% 17.5%
Jul 2016  5.75%  6.25% 6% 18%
Jan 2017  6%  6.5%   6% 18.5%

 

2. Vacation day law
The minimum number of mandatory Annual vacation days allotted is to increase by 2 days starting July 1,2016 (In essence 1 day for 2016 as it for half a year) for the first 5 years of tenure with the same employer. Above 6 years there is no change.

tenure                                      # of days allotted

up to June 30, 2016                                                         1 – 4 years                                              14 days
5  years                                               16 days

From July 1, 2016 – Dec 31,2016                                1 -4 years                                                15 days
5 years                                                 16 days

From Jan 1, 2017                                                                1- 5 years                                               16 days

Note: The number of days listed are calendar days, not work days and as such they include the weekly rest day (Shabbat) which is not a vacation day. For example employees who worked a 5 day work week got 10 days for the first 4 years (.083 days per month * 12) and those who worked a 6 day work week got 12 days for the first 4 years (1 day per month * 12).

This is very general, there are other factors that go into what employees receive in actuality, such as full or part-time, if an employee worked at least 200 or 240 days total during the year. In any case the wording of the law is binding, even if difficult to comprehend and this article is not legal advice. In instances where a personal contract or sectorial/ collective agreement entitles employees to more vacation days than listed above, this update does not apply.

3. Minimum wage update

Effective July 1st 2016 the third step of the gradual update of the min. wage to 5,000 sh per month comes into effect. The new minimum wage starting in July 2016 will be 4,825 sh  for a full time monthly rated position.

The new minimum hourly rate is 25.94 sh

Youth min wage rates

Age % of min wage min monthly rate (40 weekly hours) Min Hourly rate
עד 16 70% 3,377.5  19.52 
עד 17 75% 3,618.75  20.92 
עד 18 83% 4004.75  23.15 
Apprentice 60% 2,895.00  16.73 

 

Employee’s Rights Handbook

The “Employee’s Rights Handbook”

The first comprehensive, English language guide to Israeli payroll.
Whether  you are an employer or an employee, a new oleh or an English speaker who has trouble with the Hebrew terms, this publication is for you!

 

Employees:

Understand the terminology, layout and the Hebrew terms on your payslip

Know your rights

Understand the labor laws

What mandatory things need to be itemized on the payslip?

What are the things you need to know upon termination?

How many vacation days are you entitled to?

Is Purim a paid holiday?

What are the rights of a pregnant employee?

 

Employers:

Do your payslips comply with all the new regulations?

Do you issue employees “notification of terms of employment” as required?

Are employees given a fair hearing prior to termination?

Understand what obligatory payments exist in Israel

What is allowed to be deducted from an employee’s salary?

Is an employee who is on maternity leave allowed to work from home?

Must I pay travel expenses to all employees?

What can and cannot be deducted from an employer’s salary?

Are you aware of penalties for infringement on regulations and labor laws? (avoid this by knowing what needs to be done)

 

In this guide you will find:
* An overview of labor laws, regulations, expanded regulation orders, collective
agreements and statutes

* The make-up of the Israeli payslip

* Social Security

* Health Insurance
* Income tax

* Holiday pay, sick day payment, vacation, overtime payment, bereavement leave,
maternity leave

* Minimum wage

* Youth employment
* Advance notice

  • Tips             And much more!

 

A must for employers and employees alike. Get your copy today! This 107 page publication in hard-copy is not available in stores OR Anywhere else, get your copy today !

Price: 100 sh

For orders please go to: Order Here and fill out your details. You will receive an E-invoice for payment after which your book will be mailed to you. Self pickup is available in Jerusalem: Please state if you are interested in this option.Employee's Rights Handbook

Updated Min. wage for youth – Apr 2015

On April 1, 2015 the minimum wage in Israel was updated. This has implications on min. wage for youth, as well.

The new rates are as follows:

Age                               Monthly Rate            Hourly Rate    

up to 16                        3,255 sh                                18.81 sh

up to 17                        3,487.50 sh                           20.15 sh

up to 18                        3,859.50 sh                          22.30 sh

18 +                               4,650 sh                               25 sh

 

There are other restrictions that apply to youth employment, such as max. number of hours pre day and per week, disallowing overtime and night work.

 

Announcing “Employee’s Rights Handbook” book launch and lectures

Book launch and lecture will be held:

In Jerusalem: on May 19th, 2015  19:00  at AACI Jerusalem, The Glassman family center Pierre Keonig st. corner of 2 Poalei Tzedek st., 4th floor (opposite Hadar mall)

In Tel-Aviv: on June 17th, 2015 16:00 at AACI Tel-Aviv, 94 A Allenby st.

 

The “Employee’s Rights Handbook”

The first comprehensive, English language guide to Israeli payroll.
Whether  you are an employer or an employee, a new oleh or an English speaker who has trouble with the Hebrew terms, this publication is for you!

 

Employees:

Understand the terminology, layout and Hebrew on your payslip

Know your rights

Understand the labor laws

What needs to be itemized on the payslip?

What are the things you need to know upon termination?

How many vacation days are you entitled to?

Is Purim a paid holiday?

What are the rights of a pregnant employee?

 

Employers:

Do your payslips comply with all the new regulations?

Do you issue employees “notification of terms of employment” as required?

Are employees given a fair hearing prior to termination?

Understand what obligatory payments exist in Israel

What is allowed to be deducted from an employee’s salary

Are you aware of penalties for infringement on regulations and labor laws? (avoid this by knowing what needs to be done)

 

In this guide you will find:
* An overview of labor laws, regulations, expanded regulation orders, collective
agreements and statutes

* The make-up of the Israeli payslip

* Social Security

* Health Insurance
* Income tax

* Holiday pay, sick day payment, vacation, overtime payment, bereavement leave,
maternity leave

* Minimum wage

* Youth employment
* Advance notice                       And much more!

 

A must for employers and employees alike. Get your copy today! This 107 page publication in hard-copy is not available in stores, on-line orders:

 

http://www.israpay.com/announcing-the-release-date-for-employees-rights-handbook/