Israel’s construction sector, reeling from a manpower shortage after the October 7 conflict with Hamas, is set to receive a boost from 10,000 Indian workers arriving in batches of 700-1,000 starting next week, a source in the Israel’s Builders Association (IBA) said on Wednesday.
The recent conflict with Hamas, lasting nearly four months, coupled with a ban on the entry of Palestinian workers and the departure of several thousand foreign workers, has plunged the Israeli construction industry into a deep crisis. Numerous projects are either stalled or facing delays.
To address the shortage, Israel has increased the quota of foreign manpower for the construction industry from 30,000 to 50,000. The Israeli government approved the arrival of 10,000 workers from India, as reported by Israeli business daily The Calcalist.
The IBA source confirmed that the details in the Calcalist report were correct.
When asked about the arrival of the first batch of workers, the source said, “We hope they’ll come next week.”
These workers will be part of the private recruitment track, parallel to the inter-governmental track, enabling swift recruitment into the construction industry. The IBA is also considering hiring workers from other countries, including Mexico, Kenya, and Malawi. Screening of workers has commenced in India, Sri Lanka, and Uzbekistan.
The Calcalist reported that out of approximately 8,000 workers examined so far, about 5,500 have been found suitable for work in Israel, with the majority being Indian. These Indian construction workers bring high professional expertise, many having previous experience in Gulf countries. Most are fluent in English, and those who worked in the Gulf are familiar with Arabic.
“The Indian construction workers are at a high professional level. Many of them were previously employed in the Gulf countries, so these are skilled manpower. Most of them are fluent in English, and those who have worked in the Gulf also know Arabic, which is a great advantage,” an industry source was quoted by the business daily as saying.
The selection process is led by IBA’s CEO Igal Slovik and Izchak Gurvitz, who heads the association’s division dealing with workers’ issues and the selection team.
Israel’s Ministry of Housing and Construction is currently said to be working on a proposal to increase by another 10,000 the hiring of workers through the private track.
This will increase the total quota of foreign workers employed in the industry from 50,000 workers today to 60,000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a telephonic conversation with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in December had “discussed advancing the arrival of foreign workers from India to the State of Israel.”
Israel’s Minister of Economy, Nir Barkat, during his trip to India in April last year, had spoken to officials and his counterpart in New Delhi about hiring Indians in various sectors, including the construction sector.
The discussions then revolved around bringing in almost 160,000 people in various sectors.
About 18,000 Indians are working in Israel, mostly as caregivers. Most of them decided to stay back in Israel and did not leave the country during the war because “they felt quite secure” and “also because the salaries are quite attractive”.
Israel and India also inked an agreement in May last year during the then Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen’s visit to New Delhi that will allow 42,000 Indian workers to work in the Jewish state in the fields of construction and nursing, a move that was then seen “to help deal with the rising cost of living and assist thousands of families waiting for nursing care”.
A statement released by the Israeli Foreign Ministry then said that 34,000 workers will be engaged in the construction field and another 8,000 for nursing nee