Hundreds of Palestinians laid off after boycott forced factory to move to Israel, Sod

Re: Hundreds of Palestinians laid off after boycott forced factory to move to Israel,

Cardinal said:

Well, I'm not entirely clear how the Palestinians were subsidizing the Israelis when an Israeli company was paying Palestinians a living wage for their work, but frankly, it does seem to be a win-win for all: The Palestinians are better off because there are fewer Jews in the West Bank, and Israelis get more employment because the factory is relocated to Israel.

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There's a reason why Palestinian labor is a hot commodity in Israel: it's dirt-cheap.

Israel, a developed nation, doesn't rely on its own population for labor, and wages are only part of the reason why Palestinian labor costs but a fraction of its foreign counterparts. Palestinian labor is unregulated; Israeli businesses save so much money that would otherwise go for insurance, workplace regulations, benefits, etc. Furthermore, there's no fear of capital flight. Palestinians end up spending the wages they earn on Israeli commodities and services. Foreign workers, however, send most of their earnings abroad. The proximity of the territories is also a big advantage; no need for an infrastructure to support the expatriates and no need to worry about the Israeli social order's disruption by an influx of foreign workers.

Since the Israeli economy greatly benefits from the occupation of the territories, yes, Palestinians end up subsidizing their own misery. Of course I don't blame them for that; instead I blame those that pushed them to such a perversely abject reality. You either occupy a people and bear both their responsibility and the moral penalty or you let them free; you don't get to make pretensions of cooperation at day only to go bust their houses at night.

Re: Hundreds of Palestinians laid off after boycott forced factory to move to Israel,

Gaztopian said:

There's a reason why Palestinian labor is a hot commodity in Israel: it's dirt-cheap.

Israel, a developed nation, doesn't rely on its own population for labor, and wages are only part of the reason why Palestinian labor costs but a fraction of its foreign counterparts. Palestinian labor is unregulated; Israeli businesses save so much money that would otherwise go for insurance, workplace regulations, benefits, etc. Furthermore, there's no fear of capital flight. Palestinians end up spending the wages they earn on Israeli commodities and services. Foreign workers, however, send most of their earnings abroad. The proximity of the territories is also a big advantage; no need for an infrastructure to support the expatriates and no need to worry about the Israeli social order's disruption by an influx of foreign workers.

Since the Israeli economy greatly benefits from the occupation of the territories, yes, Palestinians end up subsidizing their own misery. Of course I don't blame them for that; instead I blame those that pushed them to such a perversely abject reality. You either occupy a people and bear both their responsibility and the moral penalty or you let them free; you don't get to make pretensions of cooperation at day only to go bust their houses at night.

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As I said, everybody wins. Fewer Jews in the West Bank, more employment for Israeli citizens.