Domino's Israel Faces $2M Lawsuit Over Shabbat Pay Violations

A Tel Aviv labor court has authorized a class action lawsuit worth approximately 7.5 million shekels (roughly $2 million) against Algad Pizza, the company operating the Domino's Pizza franchise in Israel. The suit alleges systematic violations of wage laws affecting employees who worked on Shabbat and Saturday evenings, along with additional claims regarding lump-sum payments and holiday pay.

The legal proceedings began in January 2024 when a former delivery driver filed for class action certification through attorney Assaf Cohen. According to the complaint, the company arbitrarily set the start and end times of Shabbat, sometimes earlier than traditionally observed according to Jewish law, thereby avoiding payment of the 150% wage premium required under Israel's Hours of Work and Rest Law for Shabbat work.

The plaintiff alleged that employees working afternoon and evening shifts on the Shabbat received regular wages instead of the legally mandated premium. He contends this pattern repeated itself across numerous branches nationwide, representing systematic practice rather than isolated incidents.

Beyond the Shabbat issue, the lawsuit includes additional claims about payment practices. Plaintiffs argue the company paid lump-sum wages that failed to reflect actual hours worked and did not fully compensate employees for holiday pay as required by law. According to the plaintiffs' estimates, cumulative damages to workers reach millions of shekels, forming the basis for the 7.5 million shekel claim now approved for class action proceedings.

Algad Pizza, owned by Danny Gold and Yossi Albaz, operates dozens of branches throughout Israel employing thousands of workers, many of them young people in delivery and weekend shift positions. The chain, which began operating in Israel in the 1990s, has become one of the country's leading pizza franchises, with kosher and mehadrin (strictly supervised) locations in several cities.

In response to the original petition filed in 2024, the company stated it was "studying the details of the request and will respond as customary in court." As of now, no updated official response to the court's approval decision has been released.

The case joins a series of class action lawsuits in Israeli labor law in recent years examining practices of major employers regarding payment for work on the day of rest. In Israel, where Shabbat is the official rest day for most workers, the law mandates significant wage premiums for those employed on that day, and case law has insisted on precise calculation of hours.

Certification of the class action now allows a broad group of current and former employees to join the proceedings and seek compensation. If the lawsuit succeeds in full, it could impact not only Algad Pizza but also other fast-food chains operating on the Sabbath. Meanwhile, the Tel Aviv labor court's decision marks an initial victory for workers and opens the door to thorough examination of wage calculation practices at the major pizza chain.