"At this rate, soon there will be no more repairmen in the State of Israel"/ShutterStock
The Chairman of the Association of Renovation Contractors in Israel, Eran Siev, today (Thursday) sent a letter to the Minister of Housing and Construction Yitzhak Goldknopf: "We are receiving worrisome calls from contractors in view of the uncertainty.
Advance the acceptance of foreign and Palestinian workers before there are no more renovation workers in the country."
Since the beginning of the fighting on October 7, thousands of renovation contractors are facing an unacceptable shortage of working hands when, according to the data of the Renovation Contractors Association, over 15 thousand Palestinian workers are missing and several more Thousands who were recruited for the war and even those who went bankrupt or changed their field of work following the changes.
The severe shortage and dependence on Palestinian workers from Judea and Samaria comes in light of policies led by the various Israeli governments over the years, which encouraged contractors to hire Palestinian workers, the renovation industry employed almost no Israeli workers at all and even less This results in foreign workers whose employment, as it is today, is not suitable for renovation work.
Eran Siv/Ynai Ditch
The chairman of the Renovation Contractors Association states in his letter the demands from the minister's office and the current government, thus touching on the deep problems and the demand for immediate solutions for the dying industry. Siv, who has been leading the industry for over 20 years, demands from the government and the minister in his letter a massive investment in the training of Israeli workers for jobs in the industry The renovations, the introduction of Palestinian workers over the age of 45 from the Yosh area to work in Israel, and this at least until the entry of an Israeli workforce and foreign workers into the industry in sufficient quantity and professionalism (of course, these are only workers who will meet the criteria set by the security authorities) and the recruitment of foreign workers with the corresponding knowledge and skills the needs of the renovation industry.
This, in addition to the requirement to allow their direct employment by the renovation contractors, thereby reducing the agency costs of the manpower corporations.
Furthermore, Siev adds and emphasizes, that the renovation industry requires special skills and therefore it is necessary to carry out selections for the benefit of the renovation industry for a skilled and expert workforce in the interior and finishing work.
Siv concludes his letter and warns that in view of the amount of work stopped following the war and the amount of work expected for the industry in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, the industry lacks at least tens of thousands of workers.
Renovation contractors are closing their businesses and many companies are in the process of closing.
"We will assist in everything that is required from our side for the reconstruction of the surrounding area and we call for an immediate decision to be taken to recruit thousands of workers," Siev concludes.
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