Hotline for Migrant Workers

Home

About

News

Publications

How to Assist?

Migrant Workers and Unaccompanied Foreign Minors

The Target Groups
An estimated 180,000 migrant workers currently reside in Israel. Although the vast majority arrived with government-issued work permits, many have lost their legal status due to deception, employer negligence and poor government policy regulating migrant labour. Others face deportation after living and working in Israel legally for extended periods of time and establishing a life in the country. In 2008, we will assist the following populations:

Detained migrants facing deportation will be educated about their rights and assisted in their actualization. We will also guarantee due process during deportation and ensure enforcement of protective legislation.
Migrants employed under new regulations will be interviewed and provided with assistance while we will make sure proposed alternatives to established labour policies safeguard their rights.
Families facing deportation will be eased into the transition to home countries while we will simultaneously advocate against their deportation.
Unaccompanied foreign minors, both detained and released, will be provided with humanitarian support while long-term and comprehensive solutions will be promoted.

Objectives Include

To educate workers about their rights and options through a telephone hotline operating six days a week and serving 300 callers a month, 80 visits to detention centers, distribution of 1,500 rights flyers, five advertisements in migrant newspapers and 10 lectures for migrant communities in and out of detention.
To provide para-legal representation for 750 detainees in interactions with the authorities.
To encourage enforcement of protective labour laws through submission of 50 complaints to government agencies and international organizations.
To monitor implementation of new systems of employment for migrant workers in all labour sectors through 60 in-depth interviews with workers and a survey of 10 manpower agencies.
To assist 10 families in contesting their deportation and to run an economic empowerment course for families returning to their home countries.
To assist and accompany 15 people through the process of submitting family unification requests and to distribute 100 rights sheets on the issue.
To submit approximately 13 legal petitions on the issues.
To meet with decision-makers regarding new systems of employment for migrant workers.
To meet with decision-makers, publish a comprehensive comparative report and initiate a Parliamentary committee discussion on the issue of unaccompanied minors.
To establish a leadership and advocacy group of families facing deportation, facilitate their exposure in the media and stage a protest regarding their deportation.
To draft citizenship legislation and lobby for its passage and to hold a public event on 'Family Day' drawing attention to the issue of 'mixed' couples.
To conduct 20 lectures, initiate nearly 100 media items and publish two e-newsletters on the issues.

This project is supported by the New Israel Fund, the Krieger Fund, the European Union, CAFOD, the Sigrid Rausing Trust, the Meyer and Morris Kaplan Family and others.