JDC-TEVET Employment Initiative Helps Women of Valor Reach New Heights

Kavkazi-Israelis (Kavkazim), who immigrated to Israel from the Caucasus Mountain region of the former Soviet Union, generally struggle culturally to find their economic and social place in Israeli society. Marina's family was no exception. Like many Kavkazim, she and her husband and their five children lived in a distressed part of the country—in their case, Tel Aviv’s notoriously impoverished Hatikvah neighborhood. Due to her husband's disability, Marina shouldered the burden of providing for the family of seven. She aspired to a better life, but did not know how to go about finding a fulfilling job with decent pay. She had no choice but to spend long and arduous hours working as a cleaner.

Today, Marina still lives in the Hatikvah neighborhood, but she is flourishing in her career in human resources. She attributes her turning point to the day that she was invited to join JDC-TEVET's Eshet Chayil (Woman of Valor) workshop in Tel Aviv.

First piloted in 1994 and currently part of JDC’s cutting-edge TEVET employment initiative with the Government of Israel, the Eshet Chayil program orients immigrant women to the Israeli workplace, helps them acquire job readiness, and teaches them to harness the power of networking to successfully enter—and advance in—the working world.

Soon after joining Eshet Chayil, Marina found a job at a local human resources company. She became widely known in her neighborhood among both job seekers and prospective employers. Today, having gained some experience in the field, she is on the verge of opening her own job placement business, specializing in a niche group of women who lack Hebrew skills.

“At first I was afraid to go out on my own, especially since I still needed to improve my Hebrew,” shares Marina, who is proud that she can now support her family with dignity. “But I decided that I would learn as I go, and I am gradually feeling my wings.”

March 2009