Nearly 70% of Haredi Women Seeking Tech Jobs Are Programmers

A new study by the Employment Service reveals that approximately 70% of Haredi women seeking employment in the high-tech sector are programmers. The research highlights a significant concentration of Haredi women in software development and application analysis roles, with 69.4% of Haredi women job seekers in high-tech specializing in these areas as of August 2026. This figure is considerably higher than the 47.3% seen among women in a comparison group and 39.3% among Arab women.

The concentration in software professions has increased, rising from 59.6% in August 2023 to 69.4% in August 2026. Another 12.3% of Haredi women job seekers in high-tech are in architecture, planning, and design. The majority of these job seekers, 64.7%, are under the age of 34, underscoring the need for career planning beyond immediate job placement.

Overall, the number of Haredi women seeking high-tech jobs has also grown, with an average of 444 registered in January-February 2026, a 12.6% increase from the same period in 2025. This growth rate outpaces the 9.7% increase among women in the general population. The Employment Service noted that while the data shows an increase, it cannot directly attribute it to the influence of artificial intelligence, but emphasizes the need for ongoing professional guidance and skill adaptation due to rapid technological changes.

These findings emerge against a backdrop of a substantial rise in employment among Haredi women overall. Their employment rate for ages 25-66 increased from 66% in Q1 2014 to 80.8% in Q2 2026, with labor force participation rising from 72% to 82.8%. The employment gap between Haredi women and non-Haredi Jewish women has narrowed to about three percentage points.

The focus of the challenge is shifting from initial job entry to the quality of employment, stability, skill relevance, and career advancement. A significant portion of Haredi women in high-tech, 64%, hold vocational, technical, or engineering diplomas, a rise from 41% in 2019. In contrast, only 21.5% hold academic degrees, compared to 63.3% in the comparison group.

Geographically, 44% of Haredi women job seekers in high-tech are concentrated in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria, with 41.2% in Tel Aviv and central Israel. Einbal Meshsh, CEO of the Employment Service, stated that the impact of AI on high-tech, particularly software professions, could be significant for Haredi women due to their high concentration in this field. She stressed the organization's role in helping them plan their careers strategically, aligning their skills with future market needs.