The Israeli job market showed positive development in 2019, as the average salary reached NIS 10,856 in September, growing by 4.6 percent since last year, according to a report published by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on Wednesday.
When adjusted for the changes in the Consumer Price Index, the salary growth was slightly smaller, growing by 4.2 percent since 2018.
The average salary of hi-tech workers in September 2019 was more than double of the average Israeli, at NIS 23,087, a 5.8 percent increase since last year.
The number of jobs in the hi-tech sector also grew, reaching 329,500 jobs in September 2019, increasing by 5.6 percent compared to the previous year.
The hi-tech sector is known for its high salaries and generous benefits for its employees. The CBS report shows that even within hi-tech, different sectors range significantly in terms of the average wages. In communication services, the average salary was NIS 14,462, while the average salary in R&D was considerably higher, at NIS 26,216.
The total number of jobs in Israel reached 3.713 million in September, an increase of 4.1 percent (145,900 jobs) compared to last year.
In October, the unemployment rate fell to a low of 3.4 percent, Israel’s lowest figure in recent decades.
However, the labor force participation rate for ages 15 and over in Israel declined in October from 61.2 percent to 60.6 percent.
The sectors which enjoyed the most significant growth in the number of jobs were management and support services (4.7 percent), and information and media (4.3 percent). The sector with the most substantial loss of employment was the finance and insurance sector, with a loss of 0.8 percent of jobs.