Ministry of Economy and Industry | Directorate General of Labor

ANNUAL SUMMARY REPORT 2021

recruiting workers is an agreement signed between the recruiting country and the country of origin. The purpose of such an agreement is to establish a direct recruiting mechanism and to ensure a structured, fixed, and supervised recruitment procedure with transparency regarding the employment arrangements and the right and obligations applying to foreign workers with their arrival in the recruiting country. Agreements between two countries for recruiting workers have been an accepted practice for decades and are promoted by international organizations such as the ILO (International Labour Organization) and the IOM (International Organization for Migration). These organizations view such agreements a means that helps safeguard the rights of foreign workers. It should be noted here that these agreements were enacted as part of Israel's efforts against the forbidden practice of charging illegal commissions that impinge upon the foreign worker's freedom of choice and welfare as determined by the High Court of Justice ruling 2405 06 Kav La'Oved vs. ForeignWorkers Auxiliary Unit Administration from17.12.2018 .

Interdepartmental Teams

During 2021, the Commissioner's Unit took part in interdepartmental teams, most of which addressed issues related directly or indirectly to labor rights of foreign workers in Israel:

A. Incorporation in the home caregiving sector – many of the queries received by the Population and Immigration Authority from patients and their families described the significant daily difficulty of accepting responsibility for and complying with their obligations as direct employers of foreign workers. Consequently, the Minister of Interior decided to form an interdepartmental team to examine the current method and the feasibility of changing it to the "corporative method". The team, led by the Head of the Foreign Workers Administration in the Population and Immigration Authority, also includes representatives from the Ministries of Social Equality, Finance, Justice, and Welfare and Social Services, the National Insurance Institute, and the Commissioner of Foreign Workers' Rights in the Ministry of Economy's Labor Branch. The final report is expected to be submitted to the Minister of Interior in April 2022. B. Prevention of human trafficking – the Coordinator of the Fight Against Human Trafficking in the Ministry of Justice led a comprehensive study conducted by interdepartmental teams established under a committee of directors-general to formulate the implementation of the national program in accordance with Government Resolution No. 4463 from 13.1.2019. In this regard, four teams were set up on issues of prevention, enforcement, victim protection, and research. Each team focused on one of the areas of preference mentioned in the national program and operated according to the relevant government guidelines laid out as part of the resolution. The teams' conclusions constitute the basis for the implementational programmentioned here. C. Sick leave fund for Palestinianworkers – following an appeal submitted by the Kav La'OvedWorkers Hotline to the High Court of Justice (5918/16), an interdepartmental team was established consisting of representatives from the Population and Immigration Authority, the Ministry of Finance, The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, the Ministry of Justice, and the Minister of Labor, Welfare and Social Services. The team examines various possible uses of the balance of sick leave funds collected

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