Yesterday, a strike of doctors began in Israel: all doctors of all public clinics operate in the “Sabbath day” mode, that is only emergency operations are performed, all others are rescheduled.

Physicians demand to increase financing of the sector and to increase wage, they are sure that they will achieve this. Such strikes are held on a regular basis, it is normal for a democratic state.

In Israel customs, drivers, operators, teachers, typists in courts, lifeguards on beaches and high school students strike. In 2011, the Israeli Foreign Ministry employees were on strike: diplomats sought higher wages and better working conditions. Because of this the visit of Russian President Dmytro Medvedev was thwarted and the visit of the American leader Barack Obama to Israel was almost canceled. Of course, this brings some inconveniences, but a way to defend own rights is a natural part of the democratic process.

Because of another strike of employees, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel had to meet guests at the airport at the wheel of his own car. Could you imagine this in Ukraine? Obviously, no, because labor unions function only formally here and no one knows how they really help workers.

And in Israel, the labor union movement plays a key role in the existence of the state itself. Labor unions have real power to influence decision making at the highest level and really change people's lives. One of the founding fathers of modern Israel, David Ben-Gurion, has founded the Histadrut trade union, which has become a powerful force for the protection of workers' rights. In addition to regular duties, the trade union has contributed to the social, political and ideological unification of workers, created and developed public infrastructure. Besides taking care of workers, the work of trade unions helped, oddly enough, to develop the Hebrew culture and increase a number of repatriates.

Even the main military organization Haganah, which later became the basis for the formation of the IDF, had been subordinated to the trade union movement. Maybe that's why up to now a soldier, a man, comes first in the Israeli army, and then everything else goes.

I think Ukraine can draw much positive from this experience. Current Ukraine along with early Israel is made of sand, is often divided mentally and is not focused on the protection of workers' rights. Until now, we are working on the basis of the Soviet system, where there was no private property, and requirements of a worker were lower than the needs of the state. However, now it is time to create structures that will be focused on the needs of majority of society, not the oligarchs. Experience of Israel and other democratic states is a great base for inheritance in this respect.