Hashmira

Hashimra, founded in 1937, is today the biggest guarding company and the biggest employer in Israel. In addition to employing security guards, the company also employs cleaning and maintenance workers.

The company has thousands of customers, which include governmental institutions, industry factories, offices buildings, malls, retailers' markets, hospitals and hotels.

Nowadays the company has 50 branches throughout Israel, and employs 15,000 workers. The company's cycle of 2005 totaled in 200 million dollars.

As a manpower contractor, the source of the profits of the company is in the difference between the payment that the customers pay for the workers and the salaries the workers actually earn.

Criticism

In 2004 during an investigation conducted by the Israeli investigation TV show "Bulldog" it was discovered that the company has been violating methodically the Labour law and does not pay its employees what it is required to pay (fare, overtime, dismissal compensation).

In 2005, more than 350 Hashmira security guards were forced to take the company to court over violations of their legal rights [Cite web|url=http://www.focusong4s.org/israel/|title="A Criminal Company": G4S in Israel|language=English] .

On June 5th, 2006 the Internal Affairs Committee in the Knesset held a discussion about the company's Labour law violations and about the renewal of the company's operating license by a committee of the Ministry of Justice.

On the October 3rd, 2006 a committee of the Ministry of Justice held a discussion about the renewal of the company's operating license due to the allegations that the company has been violating the rights of thousands of security guards. The discussion was held to the request of the Internal Affairs Committee of the Knesset.The committee conditioned the renewal of the operating license to the company in 2008 in that the company would cease to fire workers before they have finished working a full year and that they would also be required to start set aside payment for pensions for all the workers required by law which they haven't been doing up until today.

References

External links

* [http://www.hashmira.com/ Hashmira Home Page]
* [http://www.kavlaoved.org.il/media-view_eng.asp?id=638 It's forbidden to fire a guard close the end of the first year of employment? “Hashmira” (G4S subsidiary) couldn’t care less] March 9, 2007
* [http://www.kavlaoved.org.il/media-view_eng.asp?id=209 Do they apply these work terms in Denmark too?] 12/10/2006
* [http://www.focusong4s.org/israel/ "A Criminal Company": G4S in Israel]
* [http://www.nif.org/about/success-stories/employment-service-clamps.html Employment Service Clamps Down on Companies That Abuse Workers’ Rights] March 14, 2007