Like the fallen leaves that accompany autumn, discussions about working Haredim accompany the election period.
Members of United Torah Judaism, to whom most of the criticism is directed, respond with a number of arguments, entitled: There is no internal division between working Haredim and all Haredim, we care for everyone equally.
""An Orthodox Jew is someone who is loyal to the rabbis, even if he works," says MK Gafni.
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On the other hand, the "working Haredim" claim that they experience discrimination in admission to Haredi institutions and that members of Knesset are not attentive to their needs.
From a sociological perspective, it is necessary to admit that working Haredim exist. Not only by virtue of believing in the working Haredim's claims that they exist, but also by reading the attacks against them from parts of the Lithuanian sector, where they are defined as failures who should walk by the side of the road, hunched over and crying.
Of course, not everyone is the same. There are those who work in business and experience almost no discrimination; there are those who work in other jobs, but behave according to all the written or oral sections of the Haredi regulations; and there are those who allow themselves to dress differently and deviate from some or most of the rules of the Haredi regulations.
They are defined as Haredi because they wear a black kippah on their heads, and they are meticulous in observing the commandments and do not celebrate the beginning of the growth of our redemption on Independence Day - which is a broader definition of the term Haredi.
These people have unique needs, which members of United Torah Judaism try to ignore.
Even if we accept their claim that they are unable to assist them in admission to institutions, what will they answer when examining their activities, especially legislative and declarative, that they do not recognize this group, and have done nothing on its behalf?.
Indeed, the laws that members of United Torah Judaism put on the agenda mainly deal with two issues, the ultra-Orthodox and the workers.
Just not among the working Haredi.
Taking care of employees, not the ultra-Orthodox
Their proposals and statements deal with issues of relief for employees, such as: an employer will not be able to require an employee to undergo biometric identification, relief and benefits for employees from National Insurance, concern that factories will not close and that workers' rights will not be harmed.
The Haredi MKs also introduced laws on social issues, for the benefit of Holocaust survivors, debtors of execution, and the like, not to mention Haredi issues, such as laws for the benefit of avrechims and their working wives, and of course on the declarative level, on issues of the holy places of Israel.
But where is the concern for the ultra-Orthodox worker, who suffers discrimination based on his religion and belief?
The fact that he cannot be hired for a public service job even if he has a rabbinical degree rather than an academic one is not a figment of the imagination or exaggeration.
It is more difficult for Haredi to get a job.
The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies examined the job integration of Haredi and non-Haredi academic graduates and found that Haredi graduates received lower levels of any response from the labor market in response to sending resumes.
It was also found that Haredi graduates were, on average, called for fewer job interviews than non-Haredi graduates. In addition, it was found that the duration of the job search of Haredi graduates - 6.6 months on average, was longer than that of job seekers from non-Haredi institutions - 4.6 on average.
As the issue has made headlines in recent years, many articles have been published about the difficulties of Haredim in finding work, but not a single Haredi MK has thought to comment on it, to protest, to try to help.
Unlike the Ministry of Economy, for example, which is doing something about it. But there is still much to improve, and the voices of the ultra-Orthodox MKs are not being heard.
Where is the initiative to establish employment centers for working Haredi, tailored to their needs, not just for the wives of the Habrechim, like Guterman did in Modiin Illit?.
Where are the initiatives for affirmative action and information conferences for employers, just like we did with the Arab sector?.
Although there have been a few attempts here and there to regulate some of these issues, without any success. If the Arabs were able to secure these laws from the opposition, and are the first to speak out against any discrimination against their voters, the Haredi MKs, if they wanted to, and if they took it seriously, could also reap successes.
