Background
The terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 marked the beginning of the protracted war against the State of Israel
The country faces a war on two fronts, in the north and in the south, as well as terrorist attacks originating in Judea and Samaria
As a result, the Israeli government has authorized the immediate enlistment of up to 350,000 reservists for an expected 2-3 months of service
Challenge
Many businesses in Israel's strong economy have been and continue to be significantly affected by the long reserve service, as skilled and unskilled workers are being called up
Almost every business is affected by this situation, whether it is the high-tech sector, the startup ecosystem, support services such as law firms and accountants, or even the local supermarket
The challenge is how to support Israel's growing and functioning economy during a potentially prolonged conflict.
Solution
Israel has a large pool of skilled and experienced workers, aged 55+
Many of them may be retired or working as independent contractors
This creates a large pool of talent that can come in and replace those called into reserve duty on a temporary basis
In addition, the initiative will also target evacuees from the north of Israel, many of whom do not work (and may not have worked since October 7) This is additional personnel that can be included in the talent pool
The benefits of such a program include:
This is not a voluntary initiative.
However, in many cases compensation for these employees may not require employers to pay social benefits (must be checked on a case-by-case basis), thus making this arrangement financially beneficial
This pool of workers will be sought for employment only on a temporary basis and will not represent a threat of replacing the reservists.
Providing skilled workers to employers in all sectors of the economy who will require minimal training to contribute almost immediately to a variety of companies.