December, 2007 Israel's 2008 Budget Proposal: Through a Gender Lens Barbara Swirski for Women's Budget Forum In the proposed national budget for fiscal 2008 social budgets decrease, while the defense budget continues to grow. This policy involves decisions that are particularly harmful to women. Every budget cut in the public services results in fewer jobs for women or the worsening of working conditions for women. Every reduction in the public service systems – education, health and social welfare - increases the burden on working women, because they are the main caregivers of family members who need supervision or care. When there are cutbacks in the public services, women are the ones who take up the slack by increasing their total hours of work (at home and at work) or by reducing their working hours outside the home, with all that this step entails. The importance of the public services to women is demonstrated in the following figures, which relate to health and housing services and to social security and public assistance payments: • Women comprise 2/3 of the persons employed in the public services: women comprise 78% of education workers and 73% of health workers; • • Some 45% of women working outside the home are employed in the public services; Women utilize health services more than men, due to their longer life expectancy, pregnancies and births, and the greater incidence of chronic illnesses among them. Thus, declines in health budgets and
under-funding of the benefits package of the health funds (HMOs) effect women more than men; HEALTH BUDGETS WERE INCREASED AT THE LAST MOMENT, DUE IN PART TO OUR ADVOCACY WORK! • Women have a more difficult time than men getting medical attention. This fact affects women's working hours as well as their free time. Time spend trying to get medical attention is working time lost (for employers as well, of course) or free time lost. For this reason, the time survey literature describes women as "time poor." Solo moms receive fewer housing services than in the past: • • The number of solo parent households receiving government mortgages declined from 1,126 in 2001 to 754 in 2005. The number of solo parent households receiving rent subsidies declined more sharply than that of total households receiving rent subsidies. The number of solo moms receiving rent subsidies declined from 23,000 in 2001to 8,300 in 2005. In 2001, solo households comprised 12% of rent subsidy recipients; in 2005, only 5.5%. • Due to their low incomes and the low level of rent assistance available, solo households are more in need of public housing than two-parent households. In 2003, solo moms comprised 17.5% of households dwelling in public housing units, while their proportion among households was 10%. The present lack of public housing is more critical for one-parent households than for other types of households. Every budgetary decision pertaining to social security or social assistance allowances is especially relevant to women, as women comprise the majority of allowance recipients. Women receive • • • • 58% of government old-age pensions; 65% of social assistance allowances; 71% of nursing care benefits; 100% (almost) of child allowances;
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100% (almost) of child support payments, birth grants and paid birth leaves.
In November 2007, the Knesset had negotiated the removal of two-thirds of the original articles of the Budget Arrangements Law – a very positive development. The problem is that most of the articles pertaining to social security allowances remain in the law, among them: • • The decision to freeze most of the payments during 2008; FAILED TO PASS DUE IN PART TO OUR ADVOCACY WORK! The decision to postpone the return of most of the payments to their 2001 level, after they were temporarily cut by 4% (in 2002); FAILED TO PASS DUE IN PART TO OUR ADVOCACY WORK! • The decision to turn some of the nursing care benefits into direct payments rather than services. We are now in the midst of a process of reducing income and corporate taxes. Income tax breaks benefit mainly persons in the top income bracket. According to an analysis by the Adva Center, 88% of persons in the top income bracket – by income from work – are men. Additional figures that demonstrate that tax cuts are much more relevant for men than for women: • • • • Direct taxes comprise 26.4% of men's income and only 16.8% of women's income; Income tax comprises 10% of men's income and only 10.4% of women's income; Due to their low incomes, 62.1% of working women do not pay income tax; Women contribute only about 18% of income tax revenues.
Three additional budget proposals that are very "inconsiderate" of Israeli women: • The imposition of a health tax of NIS 86 a month on housewives. Since housewives have no earned income, it was decided to subtract the above sum from their child allowances. If approved, this decision will comprise an additional blow to families with one bread-earner –
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families that have a higher poverty rate – at the expense of children in the family. Worldwide, money paid directly to mothers (child allowances are paid to the bank accounts of mothers) are used for the needs of children. FAILED TO PASS, DUE IN PART TO OUR ADVOCACY WORK! • The decision to postpone the third stage of the increase in the minimum wage for another seven months. The meaning of this decision: a loss of some NIS 1,000 in income for persons earning the minimum wage. Women comprise 65% of persons earning minimum wage or less. • The decision to postpone implementation of an amendment to the Manpower Companies Law (to January 2011). This amendment attempts to correct the situation whereby persons employed by manpower agencies work for long periods of time at a particular workplace without becoming employees of that workplace and without enjoying the same rights as others working there. This decision is relevant to women, as women comprise 65% of persons working at manpower companies.
The Hadassah Foundation, The New Israel Fund, The Boston Community Women’s Fund and the National Council of Women have provided generous support to the Women’s Budget Forum. The statements made and views expressed herein are solely those of the Women’s Budget Forum Women’s Budget Forum: ACRI, Adva Center, Adalah, Ahoti, Agenda, Alzahraa, Center for Religious Pluralism, Council for Peace and Equality Between the Sexes, Division for the Advancement of Women The Kibbutz Movement, Feminanci- College of Women's Empowerment, Isha L’Isha, Israel Women’s Network, Itach, Jewish-Arab Center for Economic Development, Kayan, Kolech – Orthodox Women’s Forum, Kol Ha’Isha, Lafer Center For Women and Gender Studies, Ma-hapach, M’hut, Mossawa, Noa, The organization for promoting long school day, WIZO, Women’s Council of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Women Against Violence, Women’s Economic Empowerment
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