MKs give themselves a raise, despite not actually working

Ynetnews is reporting that the Members of Knesset recently voted on a pay raise for themselves, and it just went into effect as of January 2020.

The pay riase is to the tune of 2.8%, increasing their salaries to 45,251nis per month. Ministerial salaries are being increased to 50,623nis per month. The President of Israel, Ruby Rivlin, will see his salary increase to 64,616nis per month, while the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, will his salary increase to 56,295nis per month.

I don't begrudge the MKs their nice salaries and other benefits. Politicians should be paid a nice salary, and hopefully they won't feel the need to take bribes - though we don't this play out so well in reality. MKs work hard, and being MK, or minister, president or prime minister, is not a 9 to 5 job.

But a pay increase during a year, and what will be at least a year and a half after the March elections with its coalition formation process if not considerably longer if the stalemate continues, in which the MKs have hardly worked, seems unreasonable. Out in the private sector people get pay increases, usually, after annual reviews of their performance. Employees do not get to vote on their own increase - they have to ask the boss for the increase, via whatever process is in place in any specific company, and the boss decides using whatever process of review is in place for it.

The MKs work hard and probably deserve their salaries and increases, but I would like to hear a justification for how they deserve such an increase during this period in which they are hardly working.

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