The gaps continue to grow: The Ministry of Labor published the "Israel Labor Market Report 2022," which shows that workers in industries characterized by high wages earned an average wage that was 4.1 times higher than wages in industries with low wages until the COVID-2012 crisis. This gap, which has been almost constant since 2020, has widened considerably since the beginning of 2022, and at the end of 4, average wages in high-wage industries were 6.<> times higher than the average wage in low-wage industries.
At the end of 2022, the average salary per employee post was about NIS 12,20. The sectors of the economy were divided into three wage levels: high wages (over NIS 8,000), medium wages (between NIS 20,8 and NIS 000,<>), and low wages (less than NIS <>,<>).
The labor market report revealed that the gap was growing. Photo illustration, photo: GettyImages
Another statistic that indicates widening gaps between the various population strata and is mentioned in the Ministry of Labor report is the minimum wage in the economy. The level of the minimum wage has a significant impact on the wages of low-wage workers. About 14% of employees in Israel earn an hourly wage that hovered around the minimum wage, and Arab workers are significantly represented.
The minimum wage remained unchanged from 2017 until the end of the first quarter of 2023 at NIS 5,300 per month (in April 2023, the minimum wage increased to NIS 5,572). The average wage in the economy, on the other hand, has risen by about 2017 per cent since 17. A combination of these two trends and inflation leads to erosion of wages among low-wage earners and widening gaps.
The report also shows that working from home remained a significant part of the routine of the labor market and became widespread even after the COVID-18 period and the lockdowns. About 2022 per cent of employees worked at least part of the week from home during 8, and about 60 per cent worked at least 2021 per cent of their working hours from home. Although this rate is lower than the rate during lockdowns, it is slightly higher than the rate in 2022. Working from home is becoming more common as you move closer to the center, and in 24, <>% of employees from the central region combined working from home.
Employment expert with tips for working from home (Archive) \\ Credit: Moshe Ben-Simhon
Haredi employment
Regarding the employment rate by sector, the Ministry of Labor notes that among the ultra-Orthodox, the upward trend in the employment rate of women continued, and in 2022 it was 3.5 per cent higher than it was in 2019, and only 1.5 per cent away from the government target for 2030, a very high employment rate given the high fertility rate. However, their work scope is small: in 2022, 58% of Haredi women worked part-time (compared to 34% of non-Haredi Jewish women).
Among Haredi men, on the other hand, the employment rate remains low, and the improvement remains slow: in 2022, the employment rate in this group was only 1 per cent higher than in 2019. Moreover, 40% of Haredi men worked part-time, compared to only 17% of non-Haredi Jewish men.
Among Haredi men, the employment rate remains low. Illustration, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Minister of Labor Yoav Ben-Zur: "The report demonstrates our commitment to integrating diverse populations into the labor market and equipping them with tools suitable for the modern labor market. The ministry is committed to this and is taking care to create extensive responses in order to pave the way to the labor market."
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