Kibbutz - Types of Kibbutzim

Types of Kibbutzim

There are three kibbutz movements:

1. The Kibbutz Movement, which constitutes an umbrella organization of two separate movements and ideologies: the United Kibbutz Movement, founded in 1979 as a merger of two older movements: the United Kibbutz and Union of Kvutzot and Kibbutzim, and Kibbutz Artzi Hashomer Hatzair
2. Religious Kibbutz Movement Hapoel HaMizrachi,
3. Agudat Israel Workers

Many kibbutzim were initially established by Nahal groups affiliated with Israeli youth movements, among them HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed, Hashomer Hatzair and HaMachanot HaOlim.

Following many changes which the kibbutzim over went through the years and following the appeal made to Israeli High Court of Justice by the Mizrahi Democratic Rainbow Coalition in 2001 in which the state was required to redefine the exact definition of a kibbutz in order to define the rightful benefits which the kibbutzim members should be granted by law. The reactivated legal definition was given to the Industry, Trade and Labour Minister of Israel on the December 15, 2005 (תקנות סיווג הקיבוצים). According to this classification there are three types of kibbutzim:

1. Kibbutz Shitufi (קיבוץ שיתופי): a kibbutz which still preserves a cooperative system.
2. Kibbutz Mitchadesh (קיבוץ מתחדש): a community which has a number of cooperative systems in its intentions (guaranteed minimal income within the community, partnership in the ownership of the production means, partnership in the ownership of the lands, etc.).
3. Urban kibbutz (קיבוץ עירוני): a community which exists within an existing settlement (city). Since the 1970s around 100 urban kibbutzim have been founded within existing Israeli cities. They have no enterprises of their own and all of their members work in the non-kibbutz sector. Examples include Tamuz in Beit Shemesh (near Jerusalem), Horesh in Kiryat Yovel, Jerusalem, Beit Yisrael in Gilo, Jerusalem Migvan in Sderot.