The Work Force

Alon Kupererd
Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research   en.jerusaleminstitute.org.il

The term “work force” describes the persons in the population, aged 15 and over, who are employed or unemployed and seeking employment. At the end of 2014, 69% of Israeli Jews aged 15 and over participated in the work force, meaning they were employed or seeking employment, in comparison to 47% among the Arab population. The rate of unemployed persons among Jews in Israel was 6% of the work force, and 8% among Arabs. 
In Jerusalem the rate of participation of Jews in the work force was 59% - lower than the average for Israel. Similarly among Arabs, the rate of participation in the work force in Jerusalem was comparatively low, at 40%.
When analyzing the data by gender we see that among Jewish men the rate of participation in the work force in Israel was 72%, while in Jerusalem the rate was only 57%.  
Among Arabs, the rate of participation of men in the work force in Israel was 66%, a bit lower than the rate in Jerusalem which was 68%.
The rate of unemployed persons is similar for the Jewish and Arab sectors and for the Israeli average and Jerusalem average, standing at 7%. 
In Israel, 66% of Jewish women participated in the work force in 2014, in comparison to 61% of the Jewish women in Jerusalem. 6% of the Jewish women in the work force in Israel were unemployed, while in Jerusalem the percentage of unemployed women was 8%.
The rate of participation of Arab women in the work force in Israel at large, at 28%, was much lower than that of Jewish women. In Jerusalem the rate of participation of Arab women in the work force was 13%, which is lower by over half in comparison to the Israeli average.
90% of Arab women in the work force in Israel were employed, meaning that among Arab women in Israel, there was an unemployment rate of 10%. In Jerusalem 85% of Arab women in the work force were employed, equaling an unemployment rate of 15% among the work force.
This data regarding participation of Arab women in the work force in Jerusalem is especially interesting due to the fact that it shows us that even when an Arab woman decides she would like to be employed, her chances of finding a job are lower than the chances of an Arab woman in Israel. 
In regards to impact of the level of education on work force participation, it is noticeable that among Arab women in Jerusalem, the rate of participation in the work force was higher among women with a higher level of education. 8% of women with secondary school education participated in the work force. 2% of all Arab women living in Jerusalem have attained a Master's degree - 66% of them are in the work force.
This is true also considering Arab women in Israel at large – 28% of women with secondary school education participated in the work force, compared with 88% of women with Master’s degrees.
This effect of education on the motivation to participate in the work force also exists to some extent among women in the Jewish sector, but is much more significant among Arab women. 

Sources: Central Bureau of Statistics, Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem 2016 

“Mixed Cities” in Israel

Dr. Maya Choshen

This time we aim to present a quantitative picture of the Jewish and Arab populations of Jerusalem and other cities in Israel where Jewish and Arab communities reside alongside one another. 

At the end of 2011, Jerusalem had a total population of 804,400, which included 511,400 Jewish residents and 293,000 Arab residents. The Arab population comprised a Muslim majority (96%) and Christian minority. During this year the population of Jerusalem constituted approximately10% of the total population of Israel; the city’s Jewish population constituted about 8% of the total Jewish population of Israel, and its Arab population constituted about 18% of the total Arab population of Israel. 

At the end of 2011, the proportion of the Arab population within the total population of Jerusalem (36%) was higher than its proportion within Israel (21%). We customarily speak of our mixed cities and tend to include Jerusalem in one breath with Haifa and Tel Aviv-Jaffa. Before reading further, think about the number of Jews and the number of Arabs in Haifa and Tel Aviv-Jaffa: What are these numbers, and what is the proportion of Jewish residents and Arab residents within the total population of each city, respectively?

In fact, among the three major cities, Jerusalem had the largest Jewish population, numbering 511,400, compared with 388,100 in Tel Aviv-Jaffa and 242,500 in Haifa. The Arab population of Jerusalem is also the largest: 293,000, compared with 27,800 in Haifa and 16,700 in Tel Aviv-Jaffa.

And what is the relative proportion of each population group? The proportion of the Arab population within the total population of Jerusalem (36%) is greater than its proportion within the total population of Israel (21%), Haifa (10%), and Tel Aviv-Jaffa (4%).

And what about the other mixed urban local authorities?

At the end of 2011, a total of 399,200 Arabs resided in eight cities in Israel that had an Arab population of 4% or higher. The Arab population of these cities, termed “mixed cities” for our purposes, constituted 25% of the total Arab population of Israel. As noted, 293,000 of them resided in Jerusalem, constituting 74% of the total number of Arabs residing within the mixed cities of Israel.

At the end of 2011, Lod had a total population of 70,300, which included 19,800 Arab residents (28%). Ramla had a total population of 67,000, with 15,100 Arab residents (22%). Eilat had a total population of 46,700, with 1,900 Arab residents (4%). Acco (Acre) had a total population of 46,500, with 14,000 Arab residents (30%). Nazareth Illit (Upper Nazareth) had a total population of 40,600, with 7,200 Arabs (18%). Ma’alot-Tarshiha had a total population of 21,000, with 4,100 Arab residents (20%).

The above statistics, which are presented in descending order of total population size within mixed cities, indicate that the local authority with the highest percentage of Arab residents is Jerusalem, with 36%, followed by Acco with 30%, then in descending order, Lod with 28% Arab residents, Ramla with 22%, Ma’a lot-Tarshiha with 20%, Nazareth Illit with 18%, Haifa with 10%, and Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Eilat with 4% each. 

Over the years the proportion of the Jewish population within Jerusalem has shown a decline, while simultaneously the proportion of the Arab population has increased. The percentage of Jewish residents in the city decreased from 74% in 1967 to 72% in 1980, to 68% in 2000, and to 64% in 2011. Simultaneously the Arab population increased from 26% in 1967 to 28% in 1980, to 32% in 2000, and to 36% in 2011.

Source of data: The Central Bureau of Statistics