For every 500 suitable jobs there are only two haredim willing to fill the positions, Calcalist reported Thursday, citing data accumulated by LM Manpower.
The firm says that at any given time it holds some 1,000 job offers suited to ultra-Orthodox needs, such as separation between sexes, no requirements of previous experience or education, and a kosher environment according to the highest standards.
Most of the positions are offered by customer service call centers, but many of them are also offered by hotels and restaurants.
The manpower firm also provided data on the average wages offered, which are generally between NIS 4,500-6,000 ($1,250-$1,650) a month but can also reach a figure of around NIS 7,500 ($2,070) in call centers, where positions are suitable for women.
The stipends offered to haredim by the state can reach a sum total of around NIS 4,000 ($1,000), a difference apparently too meager to encourage the sector's population to seek gainful employment.
LM Manpower CEO Rafi Elimelech says many of the companies seeking labor are willing to provide training at their own expense and accommodate employees by cutting down on women's hours and offering flexible schedules.
He added that his company offers free courses on computers intended for haredi women, but that almost no one bothered to sign up.
"Applicants from the ultra-Orthodox sector will not come of their own account and their rabbis will surely not order them to go out and work," he said.
Elimelech claims his company made great efforts to advertise job offers in the haredi sector, including taking out newspaper ads, but to no avail.
LM Manpower's data matches a survey recently performed by Betoch Hamishpacha (lit. 'In the Family'), an ultra-Orthodox newspaper, which found that only 30% of unemployed haredim have sought employment in the past two years.
In addition, only 9% of women who sought employment were forced to turn down offers because they did not suit their religious needs. The survey also found that just 37.4% of haredim of both sexes plan to look for jobs in the next two years.
