Palestinian workers enter checkpoints and crossings on their way to work in Israel (Al Jazeera - Archive)

Voices are rising in various Israeli and governmental institutions demanding the return of Palestinian workers from the West Bank to work in the Israeli labor market, in order to avoid the heavy losses incurred by Israel’s economy as a result of the war on the Gaza Strip, which has not yet been able to find an alternative to Palestinian workers.

According to an estimate by the chief economist of the Israeli Ministry of Finance, the damage to the branches of the construction, industrial and agricultural industries, due to the absence of Palestinian workers, exceeds 4 billion shekels ($1.2 billion).

With the passage of 6 months since the Israeli war on Gaza, the circle of criticism among contractors’ unions and unions has expanded from the proposal of the Israeli extreme right, which promotes the idea of ​​dispensing with Palestinian labor and bringing in foreign workers, according to a plan prepared by the Israeli government that stipulates dispensing with Palestinian workers during the year 2024, and bringing in foreign workers. Alternatives from around the world.

Under the plan of the right-wing parties in the government coalition, a plan was formulated under the name “Guaranteeing Security” for Israel to bring in foreign workers, at the initiative of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and with the support of Economy Minister Nir Barkat, to bring in 80,000 foreign workers from China, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Moldova. They work mainly in the construction and agricultural sectors.

With the failure of the government plan and the refusal of foreign workers to come to Israel due to the war and security tensions, the contractors’ unions for the various branches of work renewed their call to the Israeli government to withdraw from the foreign workers’ plan, which has proven to be a failure, and to allow Palestinian workers with permits to return to work, especially in the construction and agricultural branches, which incur estimated losses. About a billion dollars a week.

An investigation by the Calcalist economic newspaper shows that after 6 months of banning the entry of Palestinian workers and freezing their permits, and attempts to recruit and bring in foreign workers, only 1,100 foreign workers arrived in the labor market in the construction branch in Israel, and tests for construction workers in Uzbekistan were canceled on the first day, and they rarely arrive. Any worker from Sri Lanka or India.

The construction sector in Israel suffered huge losses due to the ban on Palestinian workers (Al Jazeera)

Burden and losses

The cessation of more than 150,000 Palestinian workers from the West Bank from working in Israel in the wake of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, and the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza that followed, constitutes another layer of the burden on the Israeli economy, which has been damaged and has not yet been able to find an alternative to these workers. .

The delay in returning Palestinian workers to the Israeli labor market caused a decline in the productivity of the construction branch and the real estate market, with its productivity not exceeding 30%. This also caused an economic crisis that now threatens various agricultural and commercial sectors, as well as huge losses for the branches of internal tourism services, restaurants, cafes and parties, which will leave Negative repercussions and impacts on the Israeli economy.

Work in Israel is also of great importance to the Palestinian economy, and is based on many sections of the Oslo Accords, which established procedures and rules for employing workers.

The Paris Protocol, signed in 1994 between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, stipulates providing assistance to the Palestinian economy in order to enhance its growth, but in practice it established communication and mutual dependence between the Palestinian and Israeli economies.

Ban and blockade

The director of the “Ma’an” labor union, Assaf Adeeb, reviewed the economic reality of the Palestinians after they prevented workers within the Green Line, saying: “After 6 months have passed since the war on Gaza, it has been proven that the economy is an important factor for calm and the return of stability to life. The humanitarian and economic logic indicates that there is “It is an urgent necessity for Palestinian workers to return to the Israeli labor market.”

Adeeb explained to Al Jazeera Net that the suspension of permits for about 150,000 Palestinian workers and the government plan to bring in foreign workers is nothing but an attempt at revenge by the far-right parties against the Palestinians, noting that after 6 months it was confirmed by facts and facts that the ban on the entry of Palestinians has inflicted heavy losses on the Israeli economy. Therefore, voices are rising in Israel to employ them again.

Even the direction of the Israeli security services, the director of the “Ma’an” labor union, says that he “is pushing for the return of Palestinian workers to the Israeli labor market and allowing every Palestinian who does not pose a threat to Israel’s security to work within the Green Line, which confirms that there is no justification for not allowing Palestinians to return to work.” in the Israeli market.

The Israeli trade unionist stressed that preventing Palestinian workers from working in the Israeli market serves the agenda of the extreme right in Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which is pushing for more measures to eliminate the Palestinian Authority and annex the West Bank to Israeli sovereignty, as well as undermining and blockading the Palestinian economy, restricting Palestinian banks and preventing banking transactions. Israeli with it.

Shortage and failure

Against the backdrop of the crisis in the construction and real estate sector in Israel, and the shortage of manpower in light of the failure of the government’s plan to bring in foreign workers, a new study by the Bank of Israel called for the return of Palestinian workers to the Israeli labor market and the construction branch, in order to avoid losses and avoid its collapse.

With the outbreak of the war on Gaza, the construction and real estate affairs correspondent for the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, Hella Sion, says: “All Palestinian labor in Israel stopped, which constituted about half of the workers in the construction and agricultural sectors, and the government worked to bring in foreign workers, so far with partial success.” It rejects proposals to renew Palestinian employment.

She explained that Palestinian workers are available for long-term and seasonal work in Israel, but their availability is limited during serious security crises. Therefore, it is important in the long term to bring in a sufficient number of foreign workers in specific branches and industries in the Israeli market, according to Zion.

Crisis and damage

She pointed out that the decline in Palestinian employment in Israel since the outbreak of the war on Gaza constitutes the third experience of such a decline over a long period due to security events and military operations, pointing out that Palestinian employment decreased in the wake of the first intifada, and at the beginning of the second intifada, as the employment of foreign workers expanded.

The employment crisis is not limited to the construction sector in Israel, according to what the Israeli journalist told Al Jazeera Net: “Before the war, about 310,000 non-Israeli workers were working in the Israeli economy, about half of whom were Palestinians and about half of whom were foreigners.”

She explained that with the outbreak of war, the absolute majority of Palestinian workers were prevented from working in Israel, causing the closure of more than 50% of construction workshops, and the overwhelming majority of foreign workers left the country, especially in the construction and agricultural sectors.

It believes that the Israeli economy has been severely damaged and has lost billions of shekels every month, as a result of preventing the entry of Palestinian workers to work in the Israeli labor market. There are also 250,000 Israeli workers working in various fields and branches, especially agricultural, construction, services and domestic tourism, who have also been affected by the slowdown in the Israeli economy. .

Source: Al Jazeera