""Despite the rumors, there is no improvement in the percentage of Haredi men with academic degrees, and it stands at about 91%. On the other hand, there has been a significant improvement trend in the last five years among Haredi women, whose rate of academic degrees reaches about 201," Eitan Regev, a researcher at the Taub Center, reported today to the Committee for the Advancement of the Status of Women and Gender Equality, headed by MK Aliza Lavie, which discussed the employment of Haredi women today.
""The government's policy that support funds and rewards for employers are given only to Haredi men and not Haredi women will have an impact on the place of Haredi women in the employment market," said committee chairwoman MK Aliza Lavie. "We will begin to see achievements run backwards. Haredi women are not second-class citizens. They earn less, are less educated, and are subject to employment exploitation due to their situation. The growing gap between them and Haredi men and the rest of society in all matters relating to wages, education, and employment will only grow and will be a failure for generations. In a community where gender gaps are deeply rooted and culturally understood, we must be doubly careful, show sensitivity to differences, and advance thinking that will be based on existing knowledge and translate it into action.".
Reversal of the trend between men and women in the Haredi sector
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Eitan Regev from the Taub Center pointed out the change in Haredi society over the course of three decades – 35 years ago, only 16% of Haredi men were not working. Today, 52% of Haredi men are not working. The only industry in which the rate of employed Haredi has increased dramatically is the education industry. In contrast to men, there is an opposite trend among women: 35 years ago, 60% were not working and today about 40% are not working. The rate of women employed in teaching was 17% then and today it reaches 35%. In the general public, the rate of those engaged in education is 4%, and among non-Haredi women, 17%. 55% of Haredi women without an academic degree are employed in education, and 11.5% of them are engaged in real estate or banking.
Due to the large number of ultra-Orthodox women receiving training to work in education, there is a huge excess of demand in the field. The increase in the number of ultra-Orthodox female students in the last decade is 67%, while the increase in the number of female teachers is 85%. In kindergartens, the increase in the number of kindergarten teachers, caregivers and after-school care workers in the last decade is 109%. Due to the large excess of demand in the field, the scope of jobs for women involved in education is shrinking.".
In a few years: a shortage of teachers
Ruth Elmaleh, supervisor of Haredi education, said in the discussion that "the Ministry of Education recognized the final exams of the Haredi seminaries as equivalent to the matriculation exams, and this greatly helps Haredi education graduates to easily complete their matriculation exams. Until 3 years ago, they had to take all the matriculation exams, and this was a difficult obstacle. The recognition gave them a big jump, and these days there are 500 Haredi girls in the process of completing their matriculation exams. They are tested in the seminary in history, mathematics, English, and Hebrew and only have to complete Bible, mathematics, and civics on their own. They do this easily. In the last four to five years, a radical transformation has taken place. The engineering and accounting professions have become very prestigious.".
According to Elmaleh, in a few years there will be a shortage of teachers. "The phenomenon I'm talking about is prominent in the seminars." Despite this, Elmaleh says that not many girls go to academic institutions. It's hundreds. But it's not yet in the 'mainstream'.
The government doesn't care about the Haredi woman
Yael Elimelech, director of training for Haredi women, accuses the government of neglecting Haredi women: "The government does not encourage employment of Haredi women, because we have reached the government's goals. The goal was 631% employment, and we reached 651%. The question now is not the number of employed women, but how much they earn. An Haredi earns 301% less than a secular woman, even if she is a high-tech woman. Haredi women work in technology incubators within the community, and earn minimum wage." Racheli Evenbaum, CEO of the Meir Panim association, also claims that "Haredi women are the Indians of Israel.".
Michal Czernowitzki, a social activist, explained that the employment centers for Haredi women are a common interest of employers and the Haredi leadership. According to her, "They wanted women to work separately from men and separately from secular people. They don't work fewer hours. They do go out to pick up the children from kindergarten, but they come back in the evening. These employment centers perpetuate severe discrimination. Employers have tax benefits, they earn twice, on the backs of women.".
The claims about the market being flooded with teachers without a real capacity to absorb them are also expressed in the words of Yael Elimelech, who admits that "because traditionally most girls were directed to study teaching, there is a flood in the market and women in education only receive part-time jobs. Only a tenth of all Haredi women are employed full-time. Some of them start full-time at a young age, and as the family expands, the woman demands that the job be cut. If there were continuing education programs for children, it would allow them to continue full-time. Women without an academic education are only offered customer service or secretarial work.".
