IBA to Treat Laid-Off Workers to Psychological Counseling

If the Israel Broadcasting Authority closes down, as it is supposed to in April, dozens of long-time employees of the IBA and its Education Broadcasting Authority division will likely be let go — and to prepare for that, the state is spending large sums of money for psychological counseling for employees of its educational broadcasting wing.

The Education Broadcasting Authority’s tender division posted tenders for the psychological counseling on Sunday, the News 1 site reported. The services to be provided will not necessarily be to provide retraining for workers to get a new job, but to train the workers who will be laid off to cope with the psychological burden of unemployment.

The tender calls for the provision of five three-hour sessions for workers, of which there are dozens in the Education Broadcasting Authority. The group sessions will include 10 to 15 workers at each meeting, with each worker getting at least 15 hours of counseling and help altogether. The services will be offered to all workers for free.

Besides the workers, managers of the Authority will also receive psychological services, with counseling for themselves, as well as training for managers to identify signs of depression and anger among workers.