What are my chances of getting a job?
Israel enjoys a strong economy, and employment opportunities for graduates are good. However, competition for graduate-level jobs is keen. Employers look for workers who have a strong academic background and good work experience.
- Typical problems encountered: applicants not already living in Israel may face difficulty securing an offer of employment for a graduate-level job. Employers don’t usually hire people unless they are already in Israel. For more information see the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption (Israel)
.
- How to improve your chances: Jewish immigration is strongly encouraged and supported. If you are Jewish or of Jewish descent, the Israeli Law of Return (Aliyah)
may apply to you.
- Language requirements: Israel’s official languages are Hebrew and Arabic, although English and Russian are also widely spoken. Knowledge of Hebrew is important, especially outside the major cities. For details of online Hebrew courses see the Aliyah Job Centre
.
Where can I work?
- Major industries: electronics, telecommunications, information technology, biotechnology, tourism, construction, cut diamonds and agriculture.
- Recent growth areas: technological research and development, particularly in electronics, biotechnology and software.
- Major companies: Accenture, Amdocs, Bezeq, CEMEX, Ernst and Young, ICL, Israel Corp, Microsoft, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, The Israel Electric Corporation.
- Search for more companies: the Dun's 100
provides a list and ratings of Israel’s top 100 companies. Wikipedia - List of Companies in Israel
, Kompass Israel
, the Aliyah Job Centre
and the Israeli Science and Technology Directory
also provide lists of companies in Israel.
- Major cities: Jerusalem is Israel’s largest city and the seat of government. For political reasons, Jerusalem is not recognised as the capital by most of the international community, and many foreign embassies (including the UK embassy) are located in Tel Aviv, the centre of the country’s economic and cultural life.
What’s it like working in Israel?
- Average working hours: the legal maximum working day is 8 hours and the maximum working week is 45 hours (Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labour (Israel)
).
- Holidays: public holidays follow the Hebrew calendar and total nine a year. Holiday entitlement is 14-28 calendar days of paid vacation each year, depending on the number of years a person has been with the same employer.
- Tax rates: income tax rates for individuals range from 10% to 44%.
- Working practices and customs: the Israeli working week is from Sunday to Thursday, with a few offices also open on Friday mornings. The weekend for most office workers is Friday and Saturday. Shops and businesses close on Saturday (Shabbat).
