Report: Despite economic growth, poverty in Israel is increasing

By JPOST.COM STAFF
While the Israeli economy is continuing to grow, the conditions of an overwhelming majority of the general public are still grim, according to a report by the Adva Institute titled. "The Social State of Affairs," published Saturday evening. The economical growth can be gauged by examining the country's top earners. The overall cost of the wages of managers in the top 25 companies traded in the stock market averaged NIS four million in 2003; in 2006 this figure rose to NIS 10.4 million. Gaps in the education system are also widening. In 2006, 45.9% of teenagers were entitled to receive a matriculation degree, a drop from 2005's 46.4% and 49.2% in 2004. Compared with a meager 10.3% of high school matriculation diploma holders in the lowest earning sector who actually made it to academia, 56% of children of top earning families were accepted for higher education institutions.