Workers' Strike at Dimona Reactor

Jan 23 2002

On January 23, the employees of the Nuclear Research Facility (NRF) in Dimona suspended work for several hours and held discussions on issues relating to safety and the treatment of employees who were injured on the job.

This extraordinary action took place against the background of Israel's Channel 2 television station's grave report, broadcast on January 18, which revealed dangerous working conditions at the reactor. The television report focused on fraudulent and faulty health inspections, whitewashing of accidents and leakages and a general disregard for safety at the plant. At least 100 former and current employees of the NRF have contracted cancer and other illnesses after they were exposed to radiation and to harmful materials, and some have died, yet the NRF continues to deny that their health was impacted by their work at the nuclear plant.

The employees who went on strike today explained that they are concerned about their ill colleagues and are angry about the treatment that they received, but they are also worried about their own health and the very real possibility, that if they are exposed to radiation, they will be denied compensation.

-Rayna Moss