Last year, Jewish Communal Fund granted $100,000 from its Special Gifts Fund to Olim Beyahad, an Israeli nonprofit that helps Ethiopian-Israelis gain employment and become self-sufficient. The gift—which was the result of a bequest to JCF earmarked for grant-making in Israel—enabled 40 Ethiopian-Israelis to participate in the organization’s Employment, Empowerment, and Leadership Program (EELP). Recently, we spoke with Sigal Kanotopsky, the CEO of Olim Beyahad, about the impact of JCF’s grant, the progress being made by Olim Beyahad, and the organization’s future goals.
Jewish Communal Fund: How would you describe the mission of Olim Beyahad?
Sigal Kanotopsky: The mission of Olim Beyahad is to work to change the misperceptions and biases that exist in the Israeli workforce and society toward the Ethiopian community in Israel. Since 2006, more than 4,500 Ethiopian Israelis have graduated from higher education—but only 15 percent work in their fields of study. The majority of those 15 percent work inside the Ethiopian community. Why, after earning their bachelor’s and master’s degrees, are they not enjoying equal employment opportunity like any other Israeli?
There are two main reasons: First, my generation and those who are younger lack the professional and social network that the majority of Israeli society has through their parents or participating in the reserve army. In a small country like Israel, this network is critical to gaining your next professional position in Israeli society. Secondly, there exists discrimination and prejudice toward Ethiopians. Many potential employers do not believe in Ethiopian-Israelis’ capability to perform the job well, despite earning a B.A. and M.A. at Tel Aviv University. They judge me by my color. I’m not talking about hate; if you go outside and survey people on the street and ask them, “What you think about Ethiopian Israelis?”, the majority will say that they’re nice and polite. But if you ask those people whether they would hire an Ethiopian Israeli for a management or higher position, they would say no or hesitate. The typical employer doesn’t believe in the ability of Ethiopian-Israelis to do this job or that job. And research indicates that Ethiopian Israelis with the exact same qualifications earn 40 percent less.
JCF: How are you working to overcome these challenges?
SK: At Olim Beyahad, our mission cannot simply be to act as a job placement center. It’s much bigger—we are educating Israeli society. We are using a simple, practical, and measurable work model to work on both sides of the coin. We work with three different communities, the primary one being Ethiopian Israelis university students who are in their first year of university. Between 100 and 150 new participants attend our 10-month program where they brush up on their English language skills and learn how to write a resume, how to interview well, and how to create PowerPoint presentations. We also pair them with mentors, such as a veteran Israeli chairman or the CEO of a leading company in Israel, who give our graduates advice, open the door, and help them build their professional networks. We also help them find suitable, quality jobs in the Israeli workforce that are suitable to their fields of study and qualifications. The goal is to build their skills and create a career path for them.
JCF: What has your impact on the community been thus far?
SK: Among the nearly 1,000 graduates of our program, 88 percent are working in suitable jobs in the Israeli market. Half work in the business sector and 39 percent work in the public sector. We are building a group of leaders not just of the Ethiopian community but leaders of Israeli society. The graduates of Olim Beyahad have established Israeli professional and social networks for themselves, and are now opening the door for other Ethiopians. In another five to 10 years, they will provide many of the services that we as an organization are now giving. They will be the opening doors for others, guiding others, and serving as our mentors. Every year, 100 graduates volunteer and give back, serving as content experts and role models.
JCF: How has Olim Beyahad evolved to meet the changing needs of the Israeli-Ethiopian community?
SK: We continue to expand our program offerings. Recently, we launched a course for those who want to be business entrepreneurs. We have a program for social entrepreneurs, a course on becoming a nonprofit board member, and courses in management for our graduates. We have also started working with students in seventh to twelfth grades. Why wait until they are in college, in the wrong field of study? Our goal has been to reduce the age of our participants. If we begin working with them when they are in high school, our ability to make an impact on their career path is bigger than later on. Next year, we will triple the number of high school students we work with. The JCF grant helped us to implement all of these activities and programs. In 2015, we started with 15 high school age students and now we have 80 students in our program, thanks to JCF’s donation.
JCF: Which are the other demographics you work with to achieve Olim Beyahad’s mission?
SK: We work with more than 1,000 employers all over Israel. This includes a diverse group of professionals; the leading and senior figures in the Israeli business sector are our close and committed volunteers. We meet with CEOs and encourage them to be mentors. We want them to be exposed to the challenges that Ethiopian-Israelis face in the job market, and be aware of our activities. We call this “eye level conversation.” Once we have buy-in from the CEO, we then engage management and HR to become volunteers—they can give a lecture or prepare a graduate for a job interview. We want to help them not miss the next potential excellent employee among the Ethiopian community. This top-down approach has worked; 130 of the employers who have spoken with us have hired three or more of our graduates. Six years ago, they didn’t hire even one. This is a concrete way to measure our impact.
JCF: Are there other volunteer opportunities available with Olim Beyahad?
SK: Yes, we have more than 2,000 volunteers from all over Israel. Volunteer in diverse fields. They are our social agents—they form the social movement of Olim Beyahad. We don’t need to convince them why they should hire Ethiopians; they are so committed to our work. They hear about us from friends. We are selective when it comes to volunteers; not everyone is fit to be a mentor.
JCF: You are now helping other minority groups in Israel overcome their own challenges.
SK: Yes, we found that the Israeli public sector doesn’t have much knowledge about how minority groups can work with the government to lead long-term progress and change. We are now teaching our work model to other NGOs that are working with other minority groups in Israel, to help them become social change agents in Israel. We are taking the responsibility for how Israel society will look like. We are also starting to work with members of the media to enhance the positive presence of Ethiopian-Israelis in the media. The best way to accomplish this is by helping Ethiopian-Israelis find jobs in the Israeli media as editors, actors, etc. We want to make sure that when Ethiopian-Israelis are interviewed in the media, they are being interviewed wearing their professional hats—as an accountant, doctor, or professor—and not simply as an Ethiopian.