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Israel
Electronics
In the 1980s, high-technology industries received the greatest
attention from the government. Israeli electronics companies competed
worldwide and in some cases were leaders in their fields. Israel's
Scitex was a leading image-processing firm, Laser Industries led
in laser surgery, Elbit led in defense electronics, and Fibronics
led in fiberoptic communication. In 1985 the electric and electronic
equipment industry represented 4.5 percent of industrial establishments,
12 percent of industrial employment, and almost 13 percent of
industrial revenues.
Despite the success of the electronics industry in the 1980s,
experts predicted that in the 1990s this sector will face a shortage
of engineers and technicians. A major reason for this shortage
is the lower net pay for engineers in Israel relative to the United
States. An identical 1985 gross salary of US$30,000 in Israel
and in California would generate a net income of US$9,000 in Israel
and US$20,000 in California. Although the Israeli would consume
a higher amount of social services than his or her counterpart
in California, a wide gap would remain between the two salaries.
As long as this gap exists, Israel will have difficuly keeping
skilled engineers.
Data as of December 1988
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