Requests up for unemployment benefits

By RUTH EGLASH
The number of people claiming unemployment benefits from the National Insurance Institute rose by some six percent during September, according to figures shared exclusively with The Jerusalem Post Monday. This data backs up statistics released last week by the National Employment Service that show a 0.8% rise in unemployment during the past four months and suggests the unemployment rate, which was 5.9% over the summer, could be ending its downward trend of recent years. However, NII Director General Esther Dominissini cautioned against using the data as an indication that Israel was entering the recession that has gripped the global economy since the collapse of two large US investment banks in September. The preliminary figures for October, she added, show a slight reduction in the number of those claiming unemployment benefits. Currently, some 60,000 people receive such benefits, a spokesman for the NII confirmed. "Even though we are seeing the signs of recession in other countries, we are still not sure what will happen in Israel in the coming months," warned Dominissini, who took over running the institute last February. "There has been a rise in requests for NII unemployment benefits, but we still don't know the scope or the length of a possible recession." However, Dominissini said she remained upbeat, emphasizing that the institute has the "tools and resources to support the social services network to help the country's citizens." "Obviously, we need to create additional tools to deal with any type of situation that might arise in Israel due to the current world economic crisis, but the NII has a reserve budget exactly for this kind of situation," she said, adding that internal studies at the institute predict that unemployment here could reach as high as 7% by next year. "This is still fairly low compared to the 11% unemployment we had in 2003-2004," pointed out Dominissini, who previously headed the National Employment Service for four-and-a-half years. "Its not like we haven't been in this situation before - we have, and we dealt with it just fine." However, Dominissini did express concern for those in the middle-lower socio-economic bracket who could find themselves falling on hard times due to the current crisis. "I worry about those who live just above the poverty line," she said. "They have never been poor, they don't know how to deal with that status day-to-day and if they lose their jobs [they] could end up in a very difficult situation." She urged employers to hold off on firing workers until it was clear what direction the local market was going to take in the coming months. In May, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported that the country's unemployment rate had fallen to its lowest level since 1984 for the first quarter of 2008. A complete interview with Esther Dominissini will appear in the Post's Frontlines section on Friday.