Cleaning Jobs in Israel: Rights and Rules

What Is Nikayon? Working in Israel's Cleaning Industry

A little background: the original article estimated that more than 250,000 employees worked in Israel's cleaning sector.

There are many different ways to work in the country's cleaning industry. Before describing them, the article recounts a case from the early 2000s that it says changed the sector.

In the early 2000s, a woman worked as a cleaner for an established company. Like other staff members, she was employed directly by that business, although her job was not a skilled profession. Eventually, she reached retirement age. Based on her years of service, she was due a substantial sum in severance pay (“pitzuyim”) and pension contributions. Trusting her employer, she had never checked whether all the legally required contributions had been made. The management was reluctant to pay such a large amount to a cleaner. The case went to court, which ordered payment of the sums due to her.

The article describes how greater oversight of cleaners' statutory entitlements followed: pension contributions, sick pay, paid leave, severance pay and other benefits.

It says this changed the cleaning labor market. Large companies, shops, malls, office complexes, municipalities and public bodies increasingly turned to cleaning contractors, known in Hebrew as “kablan nikayon.”

Companies Licensed to Provide Cleaning Services

(Cleaning Contractors)

Official cleaning contractors (“kablanei nikayon”) hold a license to provide cleaning services (“rishayon sherutei nikayon”) and are subject to government oversight concerning their obligations toward employees.

How can a worker check whether a prospective employer is a properly licensed cleaning contractor and understand what protections apply?

The first step is to verify that the contractor or company holds the relevant cleaning-services license.

The article recommends checking the records of Israel's Ministry of Labor and first asking the employer for:

• The company registration number (for a private limited company, “hevra pratit”).
• The company's exact registered Hebrew name.

With these details, it should be possible to check whether the business is licensed to provide cleaning services.

A valid license provides an additional layer of oversight, although employees should still examine their payslips and social contributions rather than assume every obligation has been met.

The article also discusses pay. It cites historical rates of NIS 30–35 per hour in 2020, rarely reaching NIS 40. These amounts were low on their own, but the article notes the value of paid vacation, sick leave, holiday entitlements, recuperation pay, pension contributions and severance-related rights over time.

Licensed cleaning contractors serve a broad range of clients: shopping malls, supermarket chains, branded stores, pharmacies, clinics, hospitals, government institutions, training centers, municipalities and more.

Many private and public institutions contract cleaning companies instead of employing cleaners directly, transferring operational responsibilities to the contractor.

The contractor, in turn, carries financial responsibilities toward its employees, including statutory insurance and contributions, and is subject to government supervision.

The article suggests that work through a licensed contractor may sometimes be less physically demanding, possibly because clients take employees' formal protections more seriously.

Private Intermediaries, Contractors and “Kablanim”

Alongside licensed contractors, some smaller businesses and private entrepreneurs also offer cleaning services without the required cleaning-services license. The original article suggested that obtaining a license could be difficult or expensive and that such providers often serve small shops or manufacturers seeking lower costs. This may include office cleaning outside business hours and fixed-price cleaning jobs.

Such arrangements may have both advantages and disadvantages. The article quotes historical hourly rates of NIS 35–40, sometimes higher than those at larger contractors. However, the absence of proper employment arrangements may mean that paid leave, sick pay, holiday pay, recuperation payments, pensions and severance rights are not correctly provided. Actual legal entitlements cannot simply be waived by agreement.

A few hours of extra work at a higher rate may seem attractive, but the full value of statutory employment benefits must be considered.

In the article's historical estimate, the combined value of additional social benefits could amount to roughly 25% of wages. This is an approximate illustration, not a verified current statutory rate.

Finding Domestic Cleaning Work Independently

Another part of Israel's cleaning industry is private household cleaning. Online intermediaries advertise many jobs cleaning apartments and houses. The article describes historical cash-pay rates of NIS 35–50 per hour and notes that such arrangements have sometimes taken place without formal payroll or social-benefit payments. This should not be assumed to be lawful.

Workers sometimes find clients themselves: a household seeking a domestic cleaner (“meshek bayit”). The source cites rates of NIS 50–70 per hour for direct arrangements.

Cleaning private homes can involve particularly intensive physical work, with expectations of fast and thorough service. This may partly explain the higher hourly rates compared with some commercial cleaning positions.

But there is another side to the story: informal domestic cleaning may expose workers to problems involving insurance, employer responsibilities and missing social contributions. Workers should verify their legal rights and the nature of the employment relationship.

We hope this overview helps explain the different working arrangements in the cleaning industry. One business mentioned on AVRIKA is the Lermont cleaning company. You can browse vacancies in the Cleaning (Nikayon) category.

Photo: Image by Dariusz Sankowski from Pixabay