Israel

Combatting climate change is among the most critical issues on the global policy agenda. The transition towards a greener economy will require a pivot towards more sustainable production processes and consumption patterns. Entrepreneurs have the potential to be a major driving force behind this effort through their capacity to develop and propagate innovative green solutions. To unlock this potential, it is crucial for policy makers to implement appropriate policies and measures that enable green entrepreneurs to thrive. This report identifies lessons from international policy practices in stimulating and supporting green entrepreneurship from three case study countries – Canada, Germany and Israel – to inform Denmark about effective policy practices and pitfalls to avoid as it implements initiatives to strengthen its green transition. Recommendations are offered across a number of areas such as promoting greater co-ordination between relevant policy actors, strengthening specialised support for green entrepreneurs and building green markets.

This report analyses the pay system in Israel’s public sector, and provides recommendations to align it with the strategic priorities of the government. It recommends ways to simplify job classification and better match pay to market rates, particularly in areas where the public sector has trouble competing for talent. It also identifies opportunities to better reward performance, productivity and job responsibilities. In Israel, no pay reform is possible without the agreement and active collaboration of public sector unions, and so the second part of this report focuses on public sector labour relations and makes recommendations to improve the functioning of the collective bargaining process in Israel’s public sector. This report contributes to the ongoing work of the OECD’s Public Employment and Management working party, to support the implementation of the Recommendation of Council on Public Service Leadership and Capability.

This edition of the Reader’s Companion accompanies Skills Matter: Additional Results from the Survey of Adult Skills that reports the results from the 39 countries and regions that participated in the 3 rounds of data collection in the first cycle of PIAAC, with a particular focus on the 6 countries that participated in the third round of the study (Ecuador, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Peru and the United States). It describes the design and methodology of the survey and its relationship to other international assessments of young students and adults. The Survey of Adult Skills, a product of the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), was designed to provide insights into the availability of some key skills in society and how they are used at work and at home. The first survey of its kind, it directly measures proficiency in several information-processing skills – namely literacy, numeracy and problem solving in technology-rich environments.

In the wake of the technological revolution that began in the last decades of the 20th century, labour-market demand for information-processing and other high-level cognitive and interpersonal skills have been growing substantially. Based on the results from the 33 countries and regions that participated in the 1st and 2nd round of the Survey of Adult Skills in 2011-12 and in 2014-15, this report describes adults’ proficiency in three information-processing skills, and examines how proficiency is related to labour-market and social outcomes. It also places special emphasis on the results from the 3rd and final round of the first cycle of PIAAC in 2017-18, which included 6 countries (Ecuador, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Peru and the United States). The Survey of Adult Skills, a product of the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), was designed to provide insights into the availability of some of these key skills in society and how they are used at work and at home. The first survey of its kind, it directly measures proficiency in three information-processing skills: literacy, numeracy and problem-solving in technology-rich environments.

One of a series of studies on vocational education and training, this review assesses the apprenticeship system and vocational education and training in Israel and provides policy recommendations. Israel has experienced strong economic growth over the last decade, and labour shortages are observed in many sectors and occupations. At the same time, inequity and disadvantage in some population groups are rising. This report suggests several ways in which Israel might reform its vocational and apprenticeship programmes so that they effectively support the Israeli economy by providing the skills in demand on the labour market, and improve life chances and social mobility of individuals. The report argues for an expansion and integration of apprenticeship programmes into the mainstream upper secondary system, and development of systematic work-based learning placements in selected school-based vocational programmes. Currently vocational education and training in Israel is fragmented and students and employers often find it difficult to navigate. To address this challenge, the report recommends creating a single strategic body that will plan and guide policy development on vocational education and training, and champion it within government. A relatively large share of adults in Israel has low basic skills, particularly among Arab Israelis and Haredi Jews. Addressing basic skills weaknesses in these populations should be a priority.

This report examines Israel’s performance in stimulating SMEs and entrepreneurship and makes recommendations for government policy. A dual economy has gradually emerged in Israel, in which high rates of successful technology-based entrepreneurship contrast with low average productivity and growth in traditional SMEs. Israel has excellent framework conditions and programmes for technology-based start-ups and SMEs in areas such as R&D, high-level skills generation and venture capital finance. These strengths need to be maintained. At the same time, more needs to be done to spread success to all types of SMEs and all groups of the Israeli population. This report recommends a range of new and expanded interventions for example in access to credit, broad innovation, workforce skills development, management support and entrepreneurship education. It recommends underpinning these actions with a national SME and entrepreneurship policy strategy and new arrangements for inter-ministerial co-ordination.

This report delivers evidence-based and practical recommendations on how to better support employment and economic development in Israel. It builds on sub-national data analysis and consultations with local stakeholders in Haifa and Yizreel. It provides a comparative framework to understand the role of the local level in contributing to more and better quality jobs. The report can help national and local policy makers in Israel build effective and sustainable partnerships at the local level, which join-up efforts and achieve stronger outcomes across employment, training, and economic development policies. Co-ordinated policies can help workers find suitable jobs, while also stimulating entrepreneurship and productivity, which increases the quality of life and prosperity within a community as well as throughout the country.