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Obstacles to Labour Market Participation among Arab Women in Israel

Author

Listed:
  • Miaari, Sami H.

    (Tel Aviv University)

  • Khattab, Nabil

    (Doha Institute for Graduate Studies)

  • Sabbah-Karkabi, Maha

    (University of Haifa)

Abstract

This study investigates the factors that underlay the low labour force participation rate among Palestinian-Arab women in Israel relative to Jewish women despite the high educational attainment among this group. We focus on four factors that could explain this pattern: (i) socioeconomic factors such as age and education, (ii) culture factors such as the religiosity of the individual-woman and her family, (iii) family structure and related public policies, and (iv) the early retirement of Arab women from the labour market. We find that all four of these factors affect the probability of Palestinian-Arab women participating in the labour market. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for labour market policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Miaari, Sami H. & Khattab, Nabil & Sabbah-Karkabi, Maha, 2020. "Obstacles to Labour Market Participation among Arab Women in Israel," IZA Discussion Papers 13572, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13572
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Miaari, Sami H. & Sabbah-Karkabi, Maha & Loewenthal, Amit, 2020. "How Is the COVID-19 Crisis Exacerbating Socioeconomic Inequality among Palestinians in Israel?," IZA Discussion Papers 13716, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    nationality; gender; public policy; Arab women; labour market participation; religiosity; early retirement;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • J26 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Retirement; Retirement Policies

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