The Marker, Hadar Horesh, 16.12.2020
Concern in the construction industry. The program initiated by the Ministry of Housing to increase the workforce in the industry will be torpedoed following the Ministry of Agriculture's demand for additional workers in the agriculture industry as well. In recent days, Minister of Agriculture Alon Schuster has circulated a resolution proposing the import of 4,000 workers into the industry, a number that he estimates is only a third of the total shortage. According to the proposed resolution submitted by Housing Minister Yaakov Litzman, 10,000 additional workers must be imported into the construction industry.
The agriculture and construction industries are suffering from a shortage of workers, as a result of the Corona epidemic, a reduction in air traffic and a decrease in the number of Palestinian workers entering Israel. In the agriculture industry, the shortage of workers caused a decrease in the supply of agricultural produce and a rise in prices.
Yaakov Litzman, Minister of Construction and Housing Photo: Emil Salman
In the construction industry, the decline in the workforce is expected to affect the volume of construction starts and the supply of apartments. It is estimated that the shortage in the housing market will cause prices to rise over the coming year. Alongside the pressure from contractors and farmers to increase the import quotas of workers, economic factors point to the prospect of providing employment to at least some of the unemployed by referring them to the agriculture and construction industries .
The construction industry fears that if the farmers' demand to increase the quotas of foreign workers is not accepted, the Minister of Agriculture and other ministers from the Blue and White Party will oppose the proposal to import workers into the construction industry - which will lead to its abolition. Schuster's associates declined to say what he would do if his proposal was not included in the agenda of the cabinet meeting that is expected to convene tomorrow (Thursday).
Minister of Agriculture, Alon Schuster Photo: Tomer Applebaum
Eldad Nitzan, chairman of the Association of Foreign Workers ' Corporations in the Construction Industry , turned to Deputy Prime Minister Bnei Gantz and warned that if the resolution was not approved, the number of foreign workers in the industry would drop to only 8,000, about half the number of workers in Israel at the beginning of the year. In addition, the cancellation of the proposal will lead to fatal damage to the construction industry and economic growth.