Jobs for Lankans in Israel

Three hundred seasonal agricultural sector workers will get job opportunities in Israel in addition to the 5,000 strong force which has already found job opportunities under the labour laws of Israel, according to Honorary Consul General of Israel in Sri Lanka Wicky Wickramatunge.

Under a pilot project launched by the Government of Israel in agreement with the government of Sri Lanka, a batch of 300 seasonal agricultural workers from Sri Lanka will find jobs in the agricultural sector in Israel.

Wickramatunge told the Sunday Observer that israel was recognised as a country using modern and environmentally-friendly technology in agriculture. Yielding high productivity and cost-effectiveness in agricultural products have made the country competitive in this sector in international markets. Therefore, the exposure and experience that these Sri Lankan workers could gain with these employment opportunities was considerable.

Commenting further on these job opportunities, the Consul General said.

"The employment contract entered into between employee and employer under this project clearly stipulates that these workers are entitled to the same protection and rights provided to Israeli workers under the Labour Laws of Israel.

As in the case of Israeli workers, these workers are entitled to resort to the Labour Ombudsman in Israel for their grievances and violation of employment rights.

"The total charges levied to a worker by the Sri Lanka Foreign Employment Agency. On this recruitment are the minimum possible cost to a worker on foreign employment which is far below the charges levied by any recruitment agency in Sri Lanka.

This lowest charge includes payments for statutory payments for documentation and registration for other services as well. - AP