Why do fewer Arab women have jobs in Israel than in Saudi Arabia?

Well, of course... I would assume so! The Arabians who are muslims should cater to the Arabs.... I would definitely expect that. and I would believe Israeli women should have majority of the work in Isreal since it is their country! This is not even a question!

Why are no Jews employed at all in Saudi Arabia? Why can Jews not live in Saudi Arabia? Let the Saudi women return to Saudi Arabia to work.

If I follow your prospective on Arabs in Israel should only work for Arabs, lets not stop here. Russians should only work for Russian Jews, Ethiopians should only work for Ethiopians...etc do you see how racism has no end?

Daniel, you asking Arabs to Join the military before getting their rights! how about the Druze, the Beduins and others. They serve and die for Israel yet they suffer from the exact same problems as other Arabs. Target the problem of racism and not the symptoms

This reminds me of a book, How_to_Lie_with_Statistics. These women are working, but in the part of the Israeli economy that is infamous for its failure to pay taxes: the Arab village family business. This is why, to look at tax records, you'd think that half the rural Arab sector is unemployed, and there is no municipal tax base for school computers or neighborhood sidewalks or even trash collection (folks in Arab villages mostly have to shlep their own garbage to the dump). Until ALL economic activity in this sector is brought onto the books, and yes, taxed equally, there will continue to be massive inequities and complaints about local services.

make it right . You say : "Israelis last PM disagrees with you as do a number of other promient Israelis. Perhaps you can tell him why he is mistaken". In the Israeli political infightings there are often statements made and even dangerous leaks happen just to attack the opposition , it is the ugly nature of power struggle there . With all your smirks , there is not another more democratic country in the world like Israel , and I read a lot . In general , your agenda , when it comes to Israel , consist of many baseless cheep shots . Start thinking without preconceived motions . You might get some clarity .

Please the latest population statistics to learn that the only young couples with 10+ children are Jewish religious couples who feel that they are on a godly mission to increase their numbers! You right , but the Arab growth rate overall is way higher then the Jewish one .

This is the first time you make a reasonable good comment, I totally agree with you.

Last week I got knocked down on the street by a motorbike driving on the sidewalk. Today I saw another bilke driving on the sidewalk but this time he needed to cross onto the other side of the street so he just drove straight across two lanes of traffic going in opposite directions If we really want to hurt Hamas prehaps instead of using tanks & F16s get a load of Israeli civilian drivers on motorbikes and in cars, Hamas will very quickly be wiped out.

Israel is in the process of instituting for the Israeli palestinians a replica of Jim Crow's south - doing all they can to keep the arab speaking communities in poverty and away from the better paying jobs, while discouraging integration within Israeli cities and townships. The parallels are actually amazing, including vigilantes patroling miscegenation (gevalt! an arab dating an Israeli?) and increasingly draconian use of the court system to take over arab property (eg, in jaffo). Several town just passed specific discriminatory regulations (Misgav) and more will come. Arab speaking citizens really need to have strong civil rights movement, bolstered by their jewish-identified coleagues, just as the Jews of america joined in with their black bretherns in the battle for equality. Another thing I'd recommend is to attract hi-tech businesses to the villages. What with the newly skilled work force eager to work for reasonable wages. What are the barriers I wonder? do you know?

If the Minister wants an answer he only needs to read the responses above. It is easy to see the entrenched racism in Israeli society. Palestinian women are just as qualified as Jewish women. They simply don;t have the same opportunities.

if people in the USA read teh responses to thsi article they would be disgusted. This is exactly the racisit behavior that all civilized society is trying to deal with. As for #2, talking about arab women leeching off isreali tax payers, that is misguided. Afterall Isreal partially survives on US taxpayer support

The last time I was in Israel was after the 1st intifada and before the 2nd intifada. At that time the economy was doing quite well for both Arab and Jew. There was money in construction and all other means of labor force. Tourism dollars flowed to both groups as well. It seemed to me that both groups were getting comfortable with each other and mis-trust was easing. Education was 1st and foremost on the minds of Arabic families. Both boys and girls were spending time in the class and not on the street. Since the 2nd intifada of 2000 the lives of the Arabs have fallen drastically. Sorrowfully this storyline is an example of what can go wrong. Intifadas cannot increase employment or put food in your stomach.

Too many large ultra orthodox families in Israel bleeding the state. But, these arab women are educated. So why don't a group of them get together and start a transport business? Arab women in Haifa and even in Acco find jobs. Israeli arabs I know are often better educated than jewish secular or orthodox women. (so much for the discrimination argument by other posters)So,what's stopping them?

Labhras 38 Eight years ago I was in hospital in Israel. There were Arab nurses in attendance. One told me that she had trained in Amman. A few years ago I visited a friend in another hospital and I saw an Arab woman doctor and I am sure there were other Arab medical staff who worked in the same hospital. Anyway why are you so fixated on Israel. I would have thought you would more concerned about the dissident Irish Republicans who left a car bomb in front of an RUC station.

Israel is a very small society, and even in larger societies many jobs are found through networks of contacts. In Israel especially due to all the nepotism, friend brings friend programs and old boy networks from the army, anyone who doesn't have these contacts, or has fewer of them like new immigrants and Arab women do, is at a disadvantage in the job market. The geographical isolation of many Arab villages compounds the problem is. The solution is simple. The greatest engine of job growth is small business. The finance minister needs to get off his rear end and start two programs: 1 to train women to create and run small businesses and 1 to hand out microloans to establish them.

Many jobs in family business employ women but pay them under the table. The same happens in the private house help sector. Maybe in Saudi Arabia allows less tax evasion and has thus a higher statistic in female employment.

or on the other side of the street away from the "Men only " sidewalks. If you ever decide to take up wrting---stick to fiction.

You missed the point. The auther is talking about arab women and not overall women ratiw.

with the advent of the online social revolution, media can no longer be controlled so people will see what Israel is really doing and hopefully Israel will finally be held accountable for what it did and is still doing, from war crimes to upright blatant discrimination and oppression of its own people.

They can only strengthen society and help stablilize it. Unemployed people with university degrees can be a threat to society.

..and of course in Israel, welfare,child benefit's and national health coverage are so generous, that it is de-motivating.

perhaps the minister has his sight blinded by his racist views of Arabs in general and Arab women in particular??

CULTURE - arab culture has traditionally been the man is the one who goes out and earns the money whilst his wife stays home and looks after the kids. GEOGRAPHY - most the arabs live in areas like the Galilee and at a local level there are only so many jobs that need filling. If they were in the central region of the country like Tel Aviv and the arab population was spread out more like the jews are then there would be more job oportunities. TRANSPORT - transport to the Galilee isn't the best One difference between Saudi Arabia and Israel is that Saudi Arabia is trying to reform its image in the west and look more female friendly so women with jobs looks good to the west. So they might not get the best jobs but at least they can claim they do have jobs. In Israel womens rights have never been an issue so there has been no push from the top to try and change anything things just carry on as they always have because nobody feels an urgent need to change anything.

just a normal week!..Hamas is not the threat, Israeli drivers are...source 'samson blinded'

"there is no discrimination [sic] in Israel" Israelis last PM disagrees with you as do a number of other promient Israelis. Perhaps you can tell him why he is mistaken. `Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday [2008] decried the "deliberate and insufferable" discrimination against Arabs at the hands of the Israeli establishment, during an appearance before a Knesset panel in Jerusalem.` http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1036798.html Read more, type less. Better than making a fool of yourself.

"there is no discrimmination [sic] in Israel" Israelis last PM disagrees with you as do a number of other promient Israelis. `Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday [2008] decried the "deliberate and insufferable" discrimination against Arabs at the hands of the Israeli establishment, during an appearance before a Knesset panel in Jerusalem.` http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1036798.html Read more, type less. It saves making a fool of yourself.

You've called it for what it is!I guess we're both raised in a very different Israel....The sad thing is that short of a civil war I see no hope at all.Who would have believed that it will ever come to this?

"This elephant is the generous welfare system in Israel where the hard working Israeli taxpayers are supporting hundreds of thousands of lazy Arabs who are procreating at an unheard in the world rate." Israeli Arabs work and pay taxes like most Israeli Jews! Then there are the religous Jewish groups who don't work and don't pay taxes, but they do benefit greately from the "generous welfare system" and they are the ones who "are procreating at an unheard in the world rate." Please the latest population statistics to learn that the only young couples with 10+ children are Jewish religious couples who feel that they are on a godly mission to increase their numbers!

The bottom of the article says: "The writer is the coordinator of the Gender Studies Project at Mada al-Carmel, the Arab Center for Applied Social Research, in Haifa." By the way, the writer is herself a woman. (1) Do you think that a Center for Applied Social Research would pull numbers out of the air? (2) Why do so many western writers who don't live in Israel write back as if they know more about the subject than the writer? (3) One point that wasn't mentioned in the article is that the recent governments have purposely moved all government offices from Arab locales and reopened them in Jewish locals. So that an unemployed Arab has to travel to the closest Jewish locale to apply for unemployment, apply for IDs or passports, or check on his/her social security benefits! (4) Many western talkbackers talk about Arab women as their ancestors used to talk about the poor Black Americans - they are lazy, don't want to work, etc, etc. Now we see a black man in the White House

in Israel , at least much less then in any mother country . I would like the hear the statistics about Arab woman from European countries . It might surprise you more then Israeli statistics . So , calm down , in this case self-righteousness is not in order .

Why are you so self-guilt-smitten ? I would wish woman in any other countries should have as good as in Israel , including Arab woman . Yaron , I think you made the right move , Barcelona is for you .

The writer is using unverifiable data to prove his own impression. However, his impression do have a value as a concern Israel Arab, willing to try and explain the lack of mobility in the sector. But, the truth has to be checked, and the actual results are different than what the great researcher is claiming. Even (forget of the Arab Women with no college education, but who are far more involved in the larger Israeli work force) if a woman finish her University degree, is still has to face cultural and family hurdles. Those same College graduates who do stay in their villages, as aresult of sociatal pressure, should improve upon the local infrastructures, with the help of various Ministries which gather to just that. It might be ingenuous to throw all the guilts on the various national perepherial and exclusivity, but the access to the mesured improvement and work integration begins with the personal initiative. Just ask the various Israelis Jewish Moroccanfo Towns, Cities and Moshav

The tip of a well known gargantuan sized problem. One that will only get bigger as by 2025 1 in 4 Israelis shall be Arab. Namely institutionalised discrimination throughout Israel against Arabs generally. Male and female. 'Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday [2008] decried the "deliberate and insufferable" discrimination against Arabs at the hands of the Israeli establishment, during an appearance before a Knesset panel in Jerusalem.' http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1036798.html This, in addition to the failure to act on the now long standing 'Or commission's' report of 2003: "Government handling of the Arab sector has been primarily neglectful and discriminatory." So from "neglectful and discriminatory" in 2003 to "deliberate and insufferable" in 2009, it appears that Israel is well on the way to becoming a defacto binational state in all but name, with or without a 2 state solution.

to me, from san francisco. the figures of workforce in saudi arabia, could be very confusing. to begin with, the size of foreign nationals (males and females) workers population is greater than that of the saudi nationals workforce. so what is being refered to either way here, is not clear. are the females in the statistics proposed, saudi? philippinas? sri lankans? indians? pakistanis?

but is merely the tip of a well know gargantuan sized problem. One that will only get bigger as by 2025 1 in 4 Israelis shall be Arab. Namely institutionalised discrimination throughout Israel against Arabs generally. Male and female. 'Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Wednesday decried the "deliberate and insufferable" discrimination against Arabs at the hands of the Israeli establishment, during an appearance before a Knesset panel in Jerusalem.' http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1036798.html This plus the failure to act on the now long standing Or commission's report of 2003. "Government handling of the Arab sector has been primarily neglectful and discriminatory."

Stop your racist comments. I would be delighted if Arab women were given opportunities to work. Israel needs to implement a major and national programme of investment, support and social interaction into Israeli Arab communities immediately. If we are true Zionists then we need to make sure that all citizens of Israel are given the same opportunities without delay and without any discrimination.

From someone who has spend a lot of time studying the subject.

The Saudi labour market is segregated-- women and men are not allowed to work in the same room or place and foreigners too are kept in separate occupations-- and there is high unemployment and underemployment--- joblessness is estimate at 1/5 of the workforce (which excludes the majority of women). There are even fewer jobs for educated women in Saudi Arabia. Although women are the majority of students at the Saudi universities (58% of the total student population) only a tiny fraction get jobs. Less than 16% of Saudi women work. Due in large part to segregation rather than qualification there are few jobs available to Saudi university trained women. Almost all jobs are in education teaching girls as they are bared from most jobs. Since there are limits to the number of jobs teaching girls there are natural limits to the number of jobs for Saudi educated women. Aside from teaching girls most women employed in Saudi Arabia are foreign guest workers doing lowest paid jobs.

gosh, I don't see much love, nor concern about the fateof arab Israeli women. Basically it all comes down to go away, you are guilty of your condition. Then we have the nerve saying, we want peace, we teach our children shir lashalom, that we are an advanced society,... We shouldn't pretend all that. We are a backward, racist society, and who don't really want peace. We feel comfortable with the status quo oppressing the arabs.

Arabs could work for Arabs, coudn't they? The Arabs are amongst the wealthiest in the world. Why don't Arab women work for Arab employers and Arab companies? Because they need to blame Israel for racism!

You should be concerned because they are your fellow citizens and if they aren't working, they aren't paying taxes. It is in no one's interests to maintain the status quo. There is nothing to be gained by anyone from the discrimination shown to these valuable and educated workers. Employment is also a spur to new job-creation because there are more workers spending money in the market-place.

based on the responses of McQueen and Dan, it is clear they did not understand the point; evidenced by "You don`t need to be a college grad to work, so it`s hard to know what this article is really about." and "That should be the answer to the article: they need to study more." The author mentions the percentage of women who are educated to preemptively address the exact argument McQueen and Dan and put forth, which is that these women are unqualified for professional work. You clearly missed this nuance of the author's argument.

for all those great arab companies that have been created by all that $$$$$$$$$$$ that has been given to them over the years. Oh, there are no companies, gee wiz. Why do we always have to be the ones to provide for them? Self-sufficiency is the name of the game.Quit whining and start your own businesses for your women to work in. We have enough mixed work environments here and don't need more.

I personally will not hire anyone who has not done the army or national service be they Jewish, Moslem or Christian. I understand why Moslems may not want to serve in the Army, but there is no reason not to do national service.

Maybe one reason for low employment rates is that so much effort is put into seperating jewish and arab people in israel? Working together could mean that they stsrt talking to each other what could be dangerous for radicals on both sides...

And i dont want to hear any excuses that the arabs arent allowed to serve or whatever. Even if they arent, they have shown that they can organize to support terror, so they can surely organize to support their right to serve as well.

Evidently you don"t live here in Israel, this article was well thought out and very precise

Most of the female employees in Saudi Arabia and the gulf states are in fact "imported" foreigners who serve as nannies, cleaning women, and other work condidered below the honour of a Saudi family. Women aren't even allowed to drive in SaudiArabia! Now the authors wish to present (pretend) that there is no problem with conservative religious societies and womens' emancipation? And the 63 % participation of women in Mauretania's work force the authors seem to admire? Didn't it strike the authors as maybe a sifb of womens' exploitation. Mauretania and Yemen are the 2 countries which share the dubious honour if still practicing slavery for some jobs! Guess what, high percentage of womens' participation.

...can't find a work in Israel: besides high-tech, there are very few works in agriculture. Then, that's about it. Women don't work in building. Also, I believe the husbands won't let them own their shops. That should be the answer to the article: they need to study more.

to the extent I know Israel, every man and a woman entering process of interviews is given considerations. There is certainly some level of bigotry. You would expect it after years of hostilities and bloodshed. But as far as transportation goes... when I came to US I did not have a car. So, I walked 6 hours to my student home to give a lesson. I understand that Arab women require to walk a lot less to reach respective bus station. If you insist that this is the key reason for unemployment... you will have to find another reason if you give buses and they still employed no better. My point is the author approaches obvious trouble with thick brash, and by the tone of his narrative and spin use of statistic I have distinct feeling of reading another block of propaganda. As far as facts go, I have not seen Arab women demonstrating in Rhyad for better employment... that certainly still ages ahead. And as far as Jewish women demonstrating in Rhyad for better employment...

One of the difficult issues, touched on in the article, is the lack of public transportation to Bedouin towns and villages in the Negev. There is none! Noone of the main bus companies enter the villages, recognized or not, nor enters the cities, leaving those who take the public bus on the roadside, often being forced to cross a main highway with no traffic light or crosswalk.I work in the Bedouin Sector and having a car is the only way to get to work.Period. It's time the Ministry of Transport changed this and allowed women (and other residents) to travel to jobs outside their village or anywhere else for that matter!

As usual Haaretz seems to have significant problems when dealing with facts. In Saudi Arabia, women constitute only 5% of the total workforce (for example as is documented here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Saudi_Arabia#Women.27s_rights) If women constitute only 5% of the work force while 29% of them are working (as per the Haaretz number), this means the gender breakdown in Saudi Arabia is 17% female and 83% male. If on the other hand we lookup the gender breakdown and the ratio is 60% male/female (what!?) then a 5% employment fraction of the total means that the female employment rate is only 8%. Haaretz, I understand that trying to cast Israel in a negative light vis a vis Saudi Arabia is calling but this is truly ridiculous.

Why work when you can leech off the Jewish taxpayers?

What's the problem? Let them go where the jobs and the pay are better...Matter of fact,all of them should go to saudi arabia and take their husbands and children and all the rest of their families...and leave Israel for good...