Changes to Israel's job market could lead to widespread underemployment, starting with low wage earners, the Employment Service says.
In May 2020, the third month of the coronavirus crisis, some 35,400 job seekers registered with the Employment Service, a drop of 80.6% compared to April, when 182,000 signed on. Prior to the crisis, unemployment in Israel was at a record low of 3.9%, with approximately 25,000 job seekers registering each month.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
The month of May saw a total of 1.16 million job seekers on the Employment Service rolls, 938,300 of whom signed up between March and May. Of these, 136,000 had been registered prior to the corona epidemic. At the end of May, the number of registered job seekers stood at some 960,000.
According to the Employment Service, 206,500 Israelis have reported that they returned to work.
By the end of May, the percentage of unemployed members of the workforce dropped to 23.5%, after spiking to 27.5% in April.
The Employment Service insists that the number of Israelis who have returned to work is higher than the data, which is based on self-reporting, indicates.
The service is also warning that the sharp change from near-full employment to high unemployment, along with the drop in available jobs, is causing employees to lose their power to negotiate with employers. This could result in a drop in salaries for the mid and long terms, and increased underemployment in a few sectors, primarily low wage earners.
May saw some 7,800 people laid off, a drop of 51.3% compared to April when 16,000 workers were laid off. Laid-off employees accounted for over one-fourth (27.1%) of all workers who registered with the Employment Service in May, compared to 11.8% in April and 6.4% in March.
Some 18% of all workers who registered with the Employment Service since the start of the corona crisis have returned to work.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
