Last update - 00:00 30/08/2007
New program provides unemployed with vouchers for private training
By Ruth Sinai, Haaretz Correspondent
The unemployed who seek professional retraining will now receive a voucher from the state that can be used to pay for privately-run courses, instead of having to enroll in a state-run course, under a new program unveiled by the Employment Service Wednesday.
The vouchers will be worth up to NIS 7,000. They will be usable only for private courses that have been approved by the Employment Service.
Initially, the program will be a pilot project involving some 500 people. The Brookdale Institute will monitor the results, and if it succeeds, the program will be expanded.
Participants will have to finance 20 percent of the course's cost themselves, to ensure their motivation. However, they will not lose 30 percent of their unemployment benefits during the course, as is the practice today for people in retraining courses.
They will have to report periodically to the Employment Service during the course, but will not have to accept any jobs that become available during that time. If they wish, they may work part-time while studying.
Esther Domenici, the Employment Service's director, said that international studies have shown that unemployed people who are actively involved in choosing a new professional direction are more likely to find jobs than those trained under the old, paternalistic system, in which the Employment Service told them what to study.
In addition, she said, this system allows people to enroll in a course immediately, instead of having to wait until the next government-run course opens.