No, Calcalist — Reservists Aren’t the Problem. They’re the Solution.

In a recent piece, “A Paid Army: The New Model of the IDF Reservist”, Calcalist questions whether reservists are receiving too much, too fast, and too generously. The article suggests that the benefits provided to reservists are excessive, stating, “The benefits granted to reservists have reached unprecedented levels”.

Let me be absolutely clear: this framing is not just out of touch—it’s insulting.

Here’s a breakdown of what’s listed in the now-viral chart from the article:

• 11,296 shekels – Student tuition reimbursement (Let’s be clear: this isn’t a bonus. It’s a refund for a lost academic year.)
• 3,500 shekels – Vacation voucher for families (A logistical nightmare to use and barely offsets actual costs. After months away, taking more time off isn’t even realistic for many.)
• 2,000 shekels – Student tutoring voucher
• 1,500 shekels – Emotional counseling voucher
• 1,500 shekels – Couples counseling voucher
• 18,533 shekels – General compensation bonus
• 16,150 shekels – Minimum wage supplement (Only for those earning minimum wage)
• 6,524 shekels – “Personal expenses” stipend for gear the army failed to supply
• 5,808 shekels – Additional general compensation
• 2,500 shekels – “Home expense” stipend for increased burden on families
• 1,100 shekels – Original personal expense stipend
  

The total for a single 25-year-old student comes to 70,411 shekels. For a married, 30-year-old employed father of one, it’s 55,627 shekels.

But once you strip away the conditional and irrelevant benefits, what remains are two actual wartime compensation bonuses: 18,533 and 5,808 shekels—a total of 24,341 shekels.
That’s the so-called “unprecedented” reward our warfighters have received for defending the nation and putting their lives on hold for the past 18 months.

Even that modest figure obscures a deeper truth: most of the listed “benefits” aren’t actual cash transfers—they’re vouchers tied to narrow, often impractical uses. They’re not fungible. You can’t use them for rent, groceries, tuition, or loans. A couples therapy voucher is meaningless if you don’t need it. A vacation subsidy is useless if your job or business can’t afford for you to take another day off.

Now consider this: most reservists are paid their civilian salaries during service—salaries based on a 40-hour workweek. But our reality is a 168-hour workweek. Even on “days off,” we’re on call 24/7. That “bonus” isn’t a windfall. It’s a partial acknowledgment of an enormous gap in hours, effort, and sacrifice.

We’re Not Getting Rich. We’re Paying a Price.

Let’s talk about what’s actually being sacrificed:

• Professional setbacks: Lost clients. Missed promotions. Businesses we built from scratch are shrinking or collapsing while we’re on the front lines.
• Educational disruption: Entire semesters lost. Coursework delayed. Graduation dates pushed back by a year or more.
• Family strain: Missed birthdays, births, weddings, and funerals. Spouses shouldering the full burden of raising children and keeping households afloat alone.
• Emotional toll: Living under constant uncertainty—never knowing if next week means home or back in uniform. And the stress doesn’t stop when we return; we’re often gearing up for round four, five, or six.

The Real Issue: National Priorities

If we’re serious about defending this country, it’s time to rebalance the national budget.

We don’t need another PR campaign about how much we’re “appreciated.” We don’t need flashy graphics showing off meaningless vouchers. What we need is simple and urgent:

Take the billions allocated to culture, sports, and yeshivot that don’t contribute to national defense, and redirect them to the people who do.

Just one example: the 2025 budget includes 2.4 billion shekels for culture and sports. It allocates over 1 billion shekels for yeshivot.
In a time of war, it is unconscionable that these line items remain untouched while reservists are told to be grateful for a hotel voucher they’ll never use.

This isn’t about entitlement.
It’s about integrity.
Recognize our contribution.
Support our families.
Trust us to use that support wisely.
And stop pretending that a pile of vouchers adds up to real gratitude.