Ultra-Orthodox now willing to wait tables
After years of shunning jobs like waiting tables and sales, traditionally viewed as "undignified" by the ultra-Orthodox in Israel, many members of the community who recently entered the labor market have joined the service industry.
For years, ultra-Orthodox in Israel refrained from seeking employment in a range of areas. Thus, for instance, one could hardly see any ultra-Orthodox working as a salesman, technician, bus or taxi driver, clerk, porter or usher — occupations that were perceived by the ultra-Orthodox as "undignified."
Having grown up in the ultra-Orthodox city Bnei Brak, and having then gone on to study in a Jerusalem yeshiva, I can still recall the day when I first saw an ultra-Orthodox bus driver. I was about 16 at the time. An ultra-Orthodox man, dressed in a white shirt, was sitting at the big wheel. The passers-by watched with wonder, evidently mystified. In early June, while attending a family celebration in Beit Shemesh, I had deja vu when I saw ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students waiting on tables.
This may not seem peculiar to those not born and raised in the ultra-Orthodox community. Yet, it's no less than an amazing development, reflecting the undercurrents in the ultra-Orthodox society. In fact, it indicates that the traditional perceptions of work in the ultra-Orthodox sector are giving way to new ideas.
The number of working men in the ultra-Orthodox community has soared in recent years. According to figures released by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics earlier this year, the employment rate in the ultra-Orthodox community shot up in 2013 to 56%, while in 2011 it stood at 50%, and in 2002, the rate of employed ultra-Orthodox men was 40%. A report drawn by Tzipi Yarom and Sami Shlomo on behalf of the "Dossim" (ultra-Orthodox) project states that as of 2014 the rate of employed ultra-Orthodox men stood at 73%.
