A new proposal will be put on the cabinet agenda for Sunday: increasing the number of Palestinians from Judea, Samaria, and the Gaza Strip in the Israeli construction industry, sources inform "Globes." Minister of Housing and Construction Uri Ariel, who is responsible for the proposal, wants to increase the existing quota for Palestinian workers by 15,000.
Among other things, the proposal may mean that the Housing Ministry has given up on the idea of a bilateral agreement with China, and decided to find a different solution for the shortage of manpower. As of now, importing foreign workers for the construction industry is making no progress, as predicted; only a few hundred workers have arrived so far.
As part of his proposal, Ariel is also asking for an allocation of more positions to deal with issuing the new permits and increasing the supply of laborers eligible to work in Israel. The proposal also addresses the question of transporting the Palestinian workers. Under the proposal, the Ministry of Transport, National Infrastructure, and Road Safety will be instructed to bolster transportation services in the areas involved with NIS 5 million provided by the Ministry of Finance.
The criteria for work permits have not yet been set. The proposal says, "The permits will be allocated according to criteria to be determined by the Administration of Border Crossings, Population and Immigration and the Ministry of Defense, or according to special procedures to be devised for this purpose, as needed."
As of now, the quota for Palestinian laborers entering Israel to work in the construction industry is 37,500. The proposal seeks to increase this number by 15,000 to over 50,000. In contrast to previous year, when the permits were granted only to Palestinians from Judea and Samaria, this proposal is seeking to include construction workers from the Gaza Strip for the first time, according to criteria to be determined. The proposal does not mention the number of laborers that will come from Judea and Samaria or the Gaza Strip; it relates to the total number of permits.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 29, 2014
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