Remote work will bring more ultra-Orthodox to hi-tech - survey
The shift is heartening for a sector that is suffering from a shortage of good talent.
By ZEV STUBAn ultra-Orthodox man wearing a mask walks around the neighborhood of Mea Shearim, Jerusalem, April 12, 2020(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/THE JERUSALEM POST)
Social shifts created by the coronavirus pandemic are likely to increase ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) participation in the Israeli workforce, according to a survey of employers conducted by the Askaria Institute in collaboration with Kama-Tech and IATI- Israel Advanced Technology Industries.A survey of about 100 hi-tech employers found that 55 percent of those polled believe that the rise of remote work models during the pandemic will prompt more Haredim to seek work in Israel’s hi-tech sector, and 18% said that the number of haredi workers in their offices increased during the past year.Meanwhile, 78% said they believed that the current shortages of tech manpower will lead more Haredi workers to seek work in the sector, and 91% said they have a “high” or “very high” willingness to hire more ultra-Orthodox workers.The shift is heartening for a sector that is suffering from a shortage of good talent. A report published last week by the Israel Innovation Authority and Start-Up Nation Central found that some 60% of Israeli hi-tech firms say they have difficulty recruiting employees for R&D positions, and that thousands of available tech positions remain unfilled.“Especially during the employment crisis, we believe that ultra-Orthodox hi-tech has tremendous growth potential for the Israeli economy in the long run,” said Moshe Friedman, co-founder and CEO of Kama-Tech, which works to help integrate Haredi workers into the tech sector.“The survey findings illustrate the change taking place, and I am optimistic that the economy is ready. The issue is of paramount national importance, and with cooperation, the pace of integration can be greatly accelerated.”A separate study reveals a different demographic shift impacted by remote work. While Israeli workers have been coming back to the office as the coronavirus vaccination campaign marches on, European workers are still hunkered down at home, working remotely, according to Atera, a Tel Aviv-based maker of software that monitors company IT networks to predict problems.Using data from thousands of customers in 90 countries, Atera found that the number of remote connections in European countries rose by more than 100% between September 2020 and February 2021. In Israel, they increased by just 21%.“The number of remote connections continues to rise in Europe, and to fall in Israel,” said Atera CEO Gil Pekelman. “This reflects that while Israel’s lockdowns may have been more severe, Europe’s have been much longer, and may be causing greater challenges to the business environment. It also reflects that Europe needs to get its act together with the vaccine to get back to work.”Pekelman noted that remote work figures in the United States were generally similar to those in Israel, largely because closures were not strongly enforced.“From an IT standpoint, remote work opens up businesses to a whole new influx of challenges,” Pekelman said. “When the network isn’t up to speed, the whole business can’t work as well.”
