The Singer Series: State of the Nation Report 2014

The Singer Series annual State of the Nation Report: Society, Economy and Policy in Israel, the Taub Center’s premier publication, gives a unique historical and international perspective on Israel’s long-run socioeconomic trajectories, highlighting their primary determinants and offering policy options.  The Report provides the Israeli public and policy makers with vantage points that are both broad and deep in highly relevant social and economic issues, with research spanning the fields of economics, education, labor, health, and social welfare, as well as various other special topics.

This year’s report brings together 13 original, path breaking studies in the areas of society, economics, labor, education, social welfare, health, and public expenditure.  The report opens with an examination of household spending, income and savings in Israel, shedding light on differences among population groups in this regard.  The Israeli housing market is explored, including the rise in housing prices, trends in home ownership, and policy recommendations for expanding housing supply.

Two chapters address the Israeli labor market: the first offers an analysis of and suggestions for reform based on learnings from the Scandinavian “flexicurity” labor market model and the second examines trends in wage disparities.  Other chapters address trends in the education system, including issues of budgeting and educational achievements, as well as the integration of Arab Israelis and Jews in Israeli schools.  Other topics covered in this volume include: the shadow economy in Israel; poverty among Israel’s elderly; welfare budgets for Israel’s elderly population; patterns of food expenditure in Israel; financing and workforce trends in the healthcare system; and health and healthcare in the context of both mortality and disability/quality of life.