An Orthodox Jew with a hair-covering. Photo: Wiki Commons.

JNS.org – Haredi, women, and high-tech: three words you never expected to exist harmoniously in the same sentence. And yet, in the Jewish state, these three are a match made in the Garden of Eden. In Israel, the hottest social debate continues over the economic effect of Israel’s religious population and what should be done to ameliorate the resulting economic pressure on haredi families and on the state.

These discussions and subsequent laws have encouraged many haredim to seek work — previously opposed, as this takes time away from men’s commandment of Torah study and women’s duty to take care of the family and home — with their rabbis’ approval. Women, in particular, are leading this revolution within the community, as they are often the ones required to serve as breadwinners, while their husbands engage in full-time learning.

With a majority of haredim living below the poverty line, the number of employment-seekers is increasing, with more than 50 percent of haredi men now participating in Israel’s labor force, up from 33% in 2005, Israeli media reported in February.

Nevertheless, the figures continue to lag behind the 90% of non-haredi men who are employed. According to Stuart Hershkowitz, deputy CEO of The Jerusalem College of Technology’s Lev Academic Center, the low employment rate costs the Israeli economy some $2.18 billion each year: “Due to unemployment, they do not pay taxes, and, therefore, become a strain on society,” he said.

More promising are the 71% of haredi women employed in Israel — not far from the 80% employment rater of the non-haredi counterparts.

Not only are haredi women breaking norms by working outside the home, but also by working in fields traditionally assigned to men. Out of 4,500 haredim employed in high-tech, over 80% are women. This trend is likely to grow, as roughly 600 haredi women graduate from technical engineering programs each year. According to Hershkowitz, this is a game-changer for Israel , as it alters “the dialogue within the Orthodox community in particular, as well as society in general.”

The number of employed haredi men and women in the high-tech industry doubled between 2009 and 2011, according to the Economy Ministry.

One driving force behind this trend is the rise of educational institutions, such as The Jerusalem College of Technology, an Orthodox school that offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees in various fields of study, combined with intensive Jewish studies. These institutions allow students to maintain their Jewish practices while developing the skills required for the high-tech workforce. They have separate campuses for men and women, with degrees in electro-optics, electronic engineering and applied physics, to name a few.

According to Chaim Sukenik, CEO of Lev College, these major trends in haredi employment represent the “biggest social revolution in Israel in many decades. It is happening, as far as social revolutions go, very quickly. Social revolutions of this magnitude normally take decades. This is happening here much more quickly than I would have anticipated.”

As for the future of haredi men and women in the workforce, Sukenik says, “It’s really up to the government now to be the catalyst to help them by making education and employment easily accessible.”

Eliana Rudee is a fellow with the Haym Salomon Center and the author of the “Israel Girl” column for JNS.org. She is a graduate of Scripps College, where she studied international relations and Jewish studies. Her bylines have been featured in USA Today, Forbes, and The Hill. Follow her column on JNS.org.