A plenary session of the Histadrut executive approved today a proposal by secretary general Pinchas Lavon to split Solel Boneh, its huge construction cooperative, into three separate enterprises. The decision capped two weeks of cross discussion and debate in the executive and among Solel Boneh directors. The debate continued late into the night.
The three units will consist of an autonomous corporation to handle building activities in Israel, a company to handle Solel Boneh’s industrial commitments and a company to handle contracting of various kinds overseas. The management of each of the three units, as well as a coordinating council for them, will be named by Hevrat Ovdim, the Histadrut’s general holding company.
Solel Boneb gross last year 140, 000. 000 Israeli pounds, excluding the gross receipts of its industrial corporations which amounted to another 115, 000, 000 pounds. In addition to the Solel Boneh executives who opposed the split, the representatives of the left-wing parties on the Histadrut board–Achdut Avodah and Mapam–objected to it. The majority of the Mapai and Progressives on the board favored the move.
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