West Bank health workers to go on strike

Health workers in the West Bank will go on strike on Tuesday after the Palestinian Authority failed to respond to their demands, a union leader said. "The government's latest decisions highlight their ultimate negativity, negligence, and intentional denial of the issue of 5,100 workers in the health ministry," union leader Osama Najjar told Ma'an. Workers will hold a sit-in protest outside of the health ministry's building in Ramallah, Najjar added. Director of the nursery union, Suleiman Turkman, told Ma'an that "talks with the government only led to endless stalling." The PA tries to avoid its responsibilities, he added. The PA ministry of finance came under increased pressure earlier this year, with PA employees, health workers and teachers all launching strike action in protest against the late payment of salaries. In March, the International Monetary Fund warned that the PA's fiscal situation was "increasingly precarious," calling for urgent action to help close a gaping budget deficit and to stabilize the economy. The IMF said Israeli restrictions on movement and access were virtually unchanged and continued to hamper growth.