Shufersal fired a veteran employee before retirement: the incident was recognized as a work accident

An employee who worked at Shufersal for four decades was fired by the chain ten months before his retirement, and following health events he experienced in light of being summoned to a hearing, he was even recognized by the National Insurance Institute as a victim of a work accident. This emerges from a lawsuit in the amount of 430 thousand shekels filed to the Tel Aviv Regional Labor Court by the employee, Ran Donio (67), who served in his last position at Shufersal as a project manager for the "Smart Cart" project.

Donio, according to the statement of claim, began working at the Shufersal chain in 1985, when he was 26 years old. Initially as deputy manager of the Shufersal Ben Yehuda branch in Tel Aviv, and after about a decade he was promoted to manage the branch. Due to a medical problem, the chain transferred him to work in a training position, and five years ago, he was appointed as the Smart Cart project manager. Donio claims that throughout his years of work he was appreciated by his managers, was included in a small group of employees who were under "employee retention," and received annual grants in amounts of tens of thousands of shekels per year.

At the beginning of May 2024, Shufersal, under the control of brothers Yossi and Shlomi Amir, implemented an efficiency plan and announced the dismissal of about 100 employees. As part of this, Donio received an email with a letter inviting him to a hearing before dismissal. From that moment on, he was required not to come to work and his access to the company's systems was blocked, it is claimed in the lawsuit.

According to the statement of claim, immediately after reading the hearing letter, he required medical treatment. In January 2025, the National Insurance recognized the incident following the summons to the hearing as a work accident. Due to his health condition, the hearing was postponed until August 2025. Shufersal later clarified that if he were still on sick leave, the hearing would be held via Zoom or in writing, which indeed happened last August.

"In August 2025, Shufersal realized its threats and in a decision lacking good faith, and unreasonable, fired the plaintiff at the age of 66 and two months, 10 months before the legal retirement age," it was written in the lawsuit. Donio claims that Shufersal's decision to fire him 10 months before his retirement age prevented him from the right to retire with dignity after 40 years of work and to join the group of Shufersal retirees who enjoy specific benefits.

Donio asks the court to order Shufersal to pay him the full components of the lawsuit, which includes loss of income (152 thousand shekels), non-monetary compensation, emotional distress and offensive conduct, dismissal during a period of illness (80 thousand shekels), compensation for taking the company car (42 thousand shekels), non-payment of an annual grant (33 thousand shekels), and 120 thousand shekels for violation of the Equal Employment Opportunities Law.

Shufersal responded: "The lawsuit has not yet been received by the company, and after its receipt it will be examined and answered in the appropriate courts."