Hours before Israeli workers were expected to begin an open-ended strike, the Union of Local Authorities reached a deal with the government, The strike would have shut down schools, garbage collection and other services in most of Israel. The ULA said that the lack of cooperation from the government in negotiations was the cause of the strike, while officials said the union only wanted to strike. The deal was reached between the Prime Minister, the finance and interior ministers and the ULA late Saturday night,
See "Netanyahu scores last-minute deal to stop crippling nation-wide strike", Fadi Eyadat and Or Kashti, Haaretz, January 2, 2011