Tel Aviv — The heads of the Dead Sea Works (DSW) union continue to lobby against the proposed Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. and Israel Chemicals Ltd. (ICL) link up. Union leaders have stepped up the pressure to prevent a deal. Recently, two senior union members – who are also activists in the ruling Likud party – met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Union sources said that Netanyahu did not say specifically that he opposed the deal, but stressed that it was not under consideration at this time. The sources reported that the prime minister said that he is well aware of the significance of any such deal on the fate of Israel’s natural resources and the company’s workers. Last month the DSW union declared a work dispute – a move that would enable the workers to impose sanctions. The union is demanding that ICL management brief the union on contacts with PotashCorp, and is taking an increasingly militant stand on the proposed sale of ICL to PotashCorp. The union says any such sale would be an economic disaster for the southern Negev region and for 5,000 families who work for the company. They charged that the sale of ICL to “foreign hands would be akin to giving up on part of the country.” They stressed that they represent the ICL workers as well as 20-25,000 families who indirectly earn their livelihood from ICL. The Israeli government holds a golden share in the company since it was privatized back in the mid-1990s, making any deal subject to the approval of the state. No decision on the possible merger is expected before the Jan. 22 elections due to the highly controversial nature of the sale. The negotiations with PotashCorp are expected to resume after a new government is formed, which will probably not be before mid-February at the earliest.
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