"The issue of preventing the opening of businesses on Shabbos
has not received a serious legislative solution," warned
Raanan Dinur, director-general of the Ministry of Trade and
Industry. "There will be an outbreak to the point where it
will be impossible to halt the opening of businesses on
Shabbos. And this is because of the power of these bodies,
the owners of big businesses." Dinur, let it be stressed, was
speaking from a social and political perspective and not a
religious one.
At a meeting of the Knesset Labor and Welfare Committee on
the issue of opening businesses on Shabbos, Dinur said the
existing prohibition does not provide the tools needed to
counter the increasing trend. He objected to the Finance
Ministry policy of setting the number of enforcement officers
according to the amount of income they bring into the
national coffers through fines. "This is undesirable and
infeasible," he said.
Dinur said his ministry is trying to maneuver until the
matter is addressed through legislation. He says that opening
businesses on Shabbos is primarily a blow to workers, calling
it a social issue more than a religious issue. Yet, so far
the Finance Ministry has been unwilling to listen to requests
to fund increased manpower to enforce the Work and Rest Hours
Law.
According to a report, the Trade and Commerce Ministry has
four inspectors, each working three-fourths of fulltime. In
2004 they visited 834 businesses open on Shabbos, compared to
580 in 2003. In 2004, 237 fines totaling NIS 1,780,000 were
issued. Another 200 cases from 2004 are currently being
handled.
The committee also heard figures pointing to an alarming
increase in chilul Shabbos in Israel. The number of
businesses opening on Shabbos grows from one week to the
next. Mr. Avraham Birnbaum, chairman of the Merchants'
Organization of Israel, said that since Sharon took office
the number of businesses that employ Jews on Shabbos has
increased by 12 percent. The most prominent of these
businesses are at the Grand Canyon in Haifa, the Azrieli Mall
in Tel Aviv and the Big Mall in Be'er Sheva.
The Ministry also reported that 12 percent of all
employees— 230,000 workers—occasionally come in
to work on Shabbos. A proportionately high percentage of
these workers are new immigrants and young, unmarried workers
without higher education. The majority of businesses open on
Shabbos are located at shopping centers outside of municipal
bounds.
Yehuda Cohen, chairman of the Merchants' Organization of
Petach Tikva, said that because of illegal operations on
Shabbos the turnover among merchants who remain closed on
Shabbos has decreased by 60 percent even though their prices
are lower.
Menachem Salomon, chairman of the Merchants' Organization of
Rechovot, proposed pairing a policeman with every inspector,
saying his organization would be prepared to help pay the
added cost. Salomon notes that the number of inspectors has
remained the same for the past 14 years while the amount of
commercial space in Israel has increased by millions of
square meters.
