WALTO\WODD

demand equality of sacrifice. Like
many of their contemporaries who
voted for change, they did not see why
young haredim should not be forced
to join them in the dangerous military
service in southern Lebanon.
But Meretz's veteran leaders backed
the package. Parry head Yossi Sarid
said, "This arrangement allows thou-
sands of haredim who until now were
a burden on the state to fit into the
begin to earn wages
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Assisted Living Residence

dignity."
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That could have a stunning impact.
General estimates have it that two-
thirds of all haredi men avoid the draft
and earn nothing to support their
large families. As many as 90,000 men
of all ages study full-time. They live
for the most part off government
\ handouts, often below the poverty
z' line. The Treasury estimates that this
costs the taxpayer as much as 4 billion
shekels ($1 billion) a year.
This drain on the economy reached
a peak under Binyamin Netanyahu's
government, in which the haredi par-
ties enjoyed maximum leverage. If
they didn't get what they wanted, they
could bring him down. Barak's elec-
• tion weakened their armlock; if neces-
sary he could rule without them.
At the same time, the ultra-
Orthodox recognized that the imbal-
ance between study and employment
threatened their society.
"The haredi leaders signed the agree-
ment to save haredi society from col-
lapse and disintegration brought about
• by the growing increase of men who
/ don't work for most of their lives,"
wrote Dov Elboim in the newspaper
Yediot Acharanot. He is a former haredi
and authored a book on their society
With politicians happy with their
deal, the question is what work will
the yeshiva dropouts do?
It won't be easy. Those who have
spent their lives in the haredi educa-
tional system have learned little or no
math, English or science. Eli Yishai,
the Shas minister of labor and welfare,
acknowledged the situation when he
spelled out his new priorities. "I'll
allocate money to the unemployed,
support organizations, which deal
with family violence, and strengthen
employment training courses for the
haredim," Yishai said.
In the end, Israel is likely to bene-
fit. While the vocational training
could cost at least 100 million shekels
a year, according to Yea'iot economic
commentator Sever Plotzker, the new
workforce could eventually contribute
nearly one billion shekels yearly to
Israel's gross national product. I I

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7/9

1999

Detroit Jewish News

27