POALEI AGUDAT ISRAEL

Poalei Agudat Israel: translation

(Workers of the Association of Israel)

Areligiouslabor ,ovement dedicated to the development of the land and the building of a Jewish state in the spirit of the Torah and tradition. Founded in 1922 in Poland to counteract the growth of secularism, socialism, and antireligious tendencies among Jewish workers, this organization was the labor wing ofAgu-dat Israel. In the late 1920s, the first Poalei Agudat Israel pioneers arrived inPalestine. In 1933, they foundedKibbutzHafetz Hayim. In 1946, the World Union of Poalei Agudat Israel was founded. Its members joined theHaganato fight theArabinvasion in 1948, and it joined the trade union department of theHistadrutunder a special arrangement. In 1960, it officially split from Agudat Israel and became independent. It joined with a splinter group from theNational Religious Partyto formMorashato contest the 1984Knesset election.

See alsoPolitical parties.