Thousands of Construction Workers to Arrive in Israel in Early January 2024

Construction workers from India, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan: "Thousands of workers will arrive in Israel in early January" 2024

The Contractor-Builders Association of Israel announced today (Sunday) that it has completed preparations to carry out screening tests for construction and infrastructure workers in India, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan, who are meant to come to Israel and respond to the severe shortage of workers that began on October 7 and paralyzes most of the construction and infrastructure industry. The screenings are expected to begin on December 26. The association estimates that the first thousands of workers will arrive in Israel as early as early January.
This is a continuation of a measure recently approved by the government to bring 10,000 foreign workers to Israel in a fast process, not through bilateral (state-to-state) agreements, by the end of 2023. The workers who arrive through this process will be included in the quota recently increased by the government. According to the decision, the body that works directly with the foreign workers abroad is the Contractor-Builders Association, and it is the one that will submit the applications to the Population Authority for the granting of work permits for the workers it wishes to bring to Israel, a measure considered faster and involving less bureaucracy.

The Director General of the Contractor-Builders Association of Israel, Yigal Slovik, said that "the rapid absorption of workers by the Ministry of Construction and Housing and by the Population and Immigration Authority will be an important 'dose of oxygen' for the industry, most of which has not been operating since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War. The need to bring in thousands of workers in a very short period of time requires the business sector and the government to think creatively, remove barriers and maximize cooperation to achieve the goal. Only such cooperation could produce a real continuation of the rapid arrival of workers from around the world. This activity is being carried out for the future of the construction and infrastructure industry and for the economic future of Israel and its residents."