Of the inquiries regarding the Corona crisis - 51% were regarding discrimination on the basis of working conditions

The annual report summarizing the activities of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for 2020 was published. According to the report, which was submitted by the Commissioner Adv. Miriam Kabha to the Minister of Economy and Industry, Orna Barbibai, Referrals in the previous year Most of the referrals were around the first closure, in April-May.
Of all the inquiries received by the Equality Commission regarding the Corona crisis, 51% were inquiries regarding discrimination on the basis of working conditions - wages and benefits, and 37% were regarding discrimination on the basis of dismissal or severance pay. 81% of the referrals were employees in the private sector, 17% employees in the public sector and 2% employees in the third sector.
Two-thirds of all referrals received by the Equality Commission were from women. Almost half of the women's inquiries were about discrimination on the grounds of family expansion and childcare (pregnancy - 34%, fertility treatments - 5% and parenting - 8%). Complaints from working women are particularly prominent in inquiries into issues of discrimination on the grounds of dismissal or severance pay (75% of them were women), discrimination on the basis of environmental working conditions (74%), working conditions relating to wages and benefits (66%), general principle of equality ( 59%), job advertisements (57%) and recruitment process (56% of complaints were from women).
In 2020, 1,094 applications were received by the Equality Commission. This is the highest number of applications since its inception, and an increase of 40% compared to 2019. In 2020, the number of applications to the Commission on age discrimination continued to increase, and it was the highest since 2005 - when the Commission was established (109 applications compared to 80 applications in 2019).
The number of complaints about discrimination on the basis of residence has increased fivefold compared to 2019 (78 applications compared with 17), and the increase in the number of complaints about discrimination on the basis of country of origin (immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Ethiopians) has continued - three times since 2017 (from 13 applications to - 38).
The Equality Commission works to promote equality and diversity in employment in Israel in two main areas - in the legal field, in which it handles inquiries and provides legal advice, and in the field of information. Commissioner Kabha notes: "In 2020, the labor market faced difficult and complex challenges posed by the corona crisis, and unfortunately we have seen great harm to populations whose representation in the labor market is not optimal."
The Minister of Economy and Industry noted that "many populations are still discriminated against in the basic opportunity to work and earn a decent living. The corona crisis has also deepened the need to produce a fundamental change in employers' perceptions of the importance of equality, diversity and optimal integration of all populations in the labor market."