Why 'Palestinians' want to work in 'settlements': It's the money, stupid!
You've probably guessed already why 'Palestinians' want to work in Israeli 'settlements' in Judea and Samaria and in the Jewish suburbs of 'east' Jerusalem. But in case you haven't, here are the statistics that point out the obvious.
The 'Palestinians' make (literally) double as much when they work for the Jews.
PCBS research showed that 38.3 percent of the workforce was employed in the service sector, with 19.3 percent in commerce, hotels and restaurants, 14.2 percent in illegal West Bank settlements -- up from 13.9 percent in 2009 -- and 24 percent in the public sector.
Average daily wages for settlement workers were 150 shekels ($44) per day, compared to 76.9 ($22) in the West Bank and 46.2 ($13.50) in Gaza, the latest research showed.
The figures for settlement workers are likely to concern leaders of the Palestinian Authority, who have said they will outlaw all work in Israeli factories across the Green Line by 2012.
President Mahmoud Abbas reiterated Tuesday his intention to seek UN recognition of a Palestinian state by September, after peace talks broke down over the issue of West Bank settlement growth.
On Wednesday, Palestinian Authority prime minister Salam Fayyad said the international community should get ready for a Palestinian state , speaking at a conference of anti-settlement activists near Ramallah.
But settlement leader Yaakov David Ha'ivri called on the Palestinian leadership to admit that the settlements benefit workers, saying workers likely made even more than double the average wage.
"Palestinian workers in our factories are making closer to three times the wages they would be making in the PA. I guess that is the reason that Salam Fayyad's threats to impose a workers boycott never materialized.
"It would be very interesting to see the results of a true open and democratic referendum of the local Arab population" to learn if they would prefer the ban on settlements or continue working in them, he added.
Among other figures released by the PCBS, the unemployment rate in the Tulkarem governorate was the highest in the West Bank, at 22.3 percent, while in Gaza, Khan Younis had the highest at 44.7 percent.
Overall, unemployment in the Gaza Strip fell almost ten percent in 2010, down to 37.8 percent, and continues to fall in the West Bank, hitting 17.2 percent in 2010.
Recall my discussion last week of my trips to Mishor Adumim. Almost all the employees at the establishment I had to visit was 'Palestinians.' The parking lot of the industrial area and just about everyone I met there was a 'Palestinian.' And I guarantee you that they were making more money there than any 'Palestinian' working in nearby Jericho.
Just one of the many reasons why - when asked - 'Palestinians' would prefer to live in Israel over living in a 'Palestinian state.' Unlike their 'leadership,' they are not corrupt fools.
Labels: Palestinian employment in Jewish towns
Israeli companies boycotting Israel for money
You will recall that Israeli companies that wish to participate in the construction of the 'Palestinian' city of Rawabi must
boycott the Jewish cities and towns of Judea and Samaria by not using any goods produced in those cities and towns (and presumably by not hiring their residents). When I wrote the post linked above, there were 10-12 companies that were already complying with the 'Palestinians' rules. Now, there are 20, and two of them had their names read out on Army Radio this morning:
The companies named so far are:
Ytong denies they signed the contract with the anti-Zionist/anti-Semitic/Apartheid clause in it, but they are working in Rawabi (either directly or through contractors).
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority stated that no Israeli company working in Rawabi is allowed to work there without having signed the contract. (Who do you believe?)
More details
here.
Labels: BDS, Palestinian economy, Palestinian employment in Jewish towns, Rawabi, Teldor, YTong
Israel goes along with 'Palestinian' double standard
There are two headlines in Tuesday's Haaretz and Wednesday's JPost, which look very bizarre when compared with each other.
On Tuesday, Haaretz reported that the 'Palestinians' were (sensibly)
easing their ban on employment of 'Palestinians' by 'settlements' in order to ease their unemployment problem.
The Palestinian Authority has reconsidered a proposal that would have barred Palestinian laborers from working in West Bank Jewish settlements.
Although several PA officials, notably Economy Minister Hassan Abu Libdeh and Prime Minister Salad Fayyad, came out in favor of such a move at the beginning of the year, it appears the PA has decided not to push for legislation on the issue because it is unable to offer the workers alternative employment.
...
According to Israeli figures from September 2009 that were provided to the PA's donor countries, 22,000 Palestinians were working with Israeli permission in the settlements, including the settlements' industrial zones.
Non-governmental organizations have said, however, that about 10,000 other Palestinians are working in the settlements without formal permission, mainly in seasonal agricultural work.
It also appears that since September 2009, the number of Palestinians employed in the settlements has increased to nearly 35,000. These workers support a Palestinian population of more than 200,000, and PA legislation barring employment in the settlements would be an economic blow to Palestinians in the West Bank following a rise in Palestinian living standards there.
But when it comes to building the 'new Palestinian city' of Rawabi, Israeli companies participating in the project are
required to practice BDS (boycott, divest, sanction) along with everyone else participating in the project.
Right-wing politicians and attorneys attempted on Tuesday to stop Israeli companies that boycott settlement products – such as those helping to build the new Palestinian city of Rawabi – from working on government-funded projects.
The Legal Forum for the Land of Israel asked the attorney- general and the Finance Ministry to amend the law regulating governmental tenders, so that companies boycotting settlement products would be banned from bidding for government projects.
MK Arye Eldad (National Union), with the support of the Knesset Land of Israel lobby group, penned a bill to the same effect, which he hopes to file in the Knesset this week.
The attorneys and politicians stepped up their battle against settlement boycotts after Army Radio ran a story that Israeli companies working at Rawabi, which lies north of Ramallah, had agreed not to use settlement products there.
A clause to this effect was included in the contract Israeli companies signed with the Bayti Real Estate Investment Company, which is developing Rawabi.
The clause reads, “the Seller is prohibited from using and/or employing goods and/or services and/or resources manufactured and/or originating from Israeli settlements towards achieving any of the objectives of this Agreement, or in relation thereto.”
It includes east Jerusalem and the Golan Heights in its definition of settlements.
Companies that violate this clause risk the annulment of the contract, loss of pay and financial penalties.
Bashar Masri, chairman of Massar International, which co-owns Bayti, told The Jerusalem Post that settlement products had been banned in the construction of Rawabi since work on the city began in 2009.
10-12 Israeli companies (including - presumably - some of our largest infrastructure companies) are working on Rawabi now, and more than 20 are expected to do so in the future.
So it's okay for the 'Palestinians' to work in the 'settlements,' but it's also okay for the 'Palestinians' to require Israeli (and other) companies that are participating in the 'Palestinians' largest infrastructure project not to use the goods produced by the 'Palestinians' working in the 'settlements.'
Sounds like a double standard to me.
Read the whole thing.
Labels: BDS, Palestinian economy, Palestinian employment in Jewish towns, Rawabi
You've probably guessed already why 'Palestinians' want to work in Israeli 'settlements' in Judea and Samaria and in the Jewish suburbs of 'east' Jerusalem. But in case you haven't, here are the statistics that point out the obvious. The 'Palestinians' make (literally) double as much when they work for the Jews. 
