Coexistence Works: Jewish, Arab Workers Gather To Discuss Shared Life in the Workplace

Uniting as workers, both Jewish and Arab, provides an alternative to the polarized, extremist rhetoric that’s become common in Israeli society

Jewish and Arab workers from across Israel gathered at the Dead Sea earlier this month for a three-day seminar on workplace innovation and coexistence organized by the Histadrut’s Department for the Promotion of Equality.

“The seminar is taking place during a difficult and challenging time for all of us, both Arabs and Jews,” department chair Aziz Bassiouni said at the opening of the seminar. “We pray and hope for quieter days, days of brotherhood and partnership. I admit that the path is full of difficulties and challenges, but we must not lose hope and optimism. This seminar is a good example of coexistence and shared destiny—a seminar that includes both Arabs and Jews who maintain relationships of friendship and work, fighting for the rights of all workers in the country, Arabs and Jews alike.”

Bassiouni said that the idea for the seminar developed in response to workers, both Jewish and Arab, who were frustrated with threats to their job security, facing harassment at work, and other concerns.

The participants in the hall overlooking the Dead Sea represented the working public in Israel in its entirety—Jews and Arabs, Ethiopians and former Soviet Union immigrants, ultra-Orthodox and secular, public sector workers and private sector workers.

Speakers raised awareness of the challenges facing Arab Israelis in the workplace, including discrimination and low rates of Arabs in business, high tech, and other lucrative professions.

Ahmad Badran from the Israeli Democracy Institute painted a picture of life together in the workplace. About 53% of Arab-Israeli men and 42% of Arab-Israeli women work in integrated Jewish-Arab workplaces. Jews are less likely than Arabs to work in integrated workplaces, he said.

Integrated workplaces can bring challenges and tensions. Yoni Ben Bassat from the Arlozorov Forum presented examples from around the world of handling integrated workplaces and promoting partnerships between conflicting groups.

At the seminar itself, disagreements sometimes erupted into loud and painful discussions.

During a conversation about the Nation State Law, a law declaring Israel the nation state of the Jewish people that has been widely condemned by Israel’s minority populations, one Jewish worker from a religious area said, “I’m all for equality, but I don’t want our children to marry each other.” The atmosphere started to heat up, but Bassiouni calmed everyone down. “There are differences, but we need to find a way to live together,” he said. “There are disagreements among us here, but this is an opportunity to find the formula for living together, to give everyone a chance to express their opinion and voice.”

Maisam Jaljuli, the CEO of an organization that promotes Arab integration into high tech, emphasized the importance of skills like communication, teamwork, and emotional regulation for making coexistence work. “Inclusion and understanding that we are different is a springboard for all of us,” she said.

Workers at the seminar brought up the importance of gaining more tools to promote shared living. “There is always discrimination, but we need tools to fight it, tools to create coexistence,” one nurse said.

Bassiouni noted the importance of developing shared dialogue in workplaces that recognize and accept the differences between different groups.

“We all aspire to live in security and peace in the country and the region,” he said. “This is our right and the right of the workers. I am confident in the workers’ ability to achieve the best. I believe that hope will grow from the production lines in factories, from construction sites, from hospital departments, and from workers in local authorities and all areas of industry and production. Hope will grow in the hands of the workers, the most influential and significant force.”

This article was translated from Davar Hebrew by Leah Schwartz.