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Beyond the Harvest: Exploring Health Conditions of Thai Migrant Labor Workers in Israel
30 August, 2023 @ 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
SEA Junction, in collaboration with IPSR In-House Seminar and Mahidol Migration Centre (MMC), presents the bi-monthly event series titled “Wednesday SEA Mobilities,” which began in February 2022. On the last Wednesday of every two months, we jointly host seminars and panels discussing a wide range of current mobility issues in Southeast Asia. Our upcoming event will feature a presentation by Dr. Yahel Kurlander on “Beyond the Harvest: Exploring Health Conditions of Thai Migrant Labor Workers in Israel.” It will be held on 30 August 2023, from 5.30 to 7.00 pm at SEA Junction and will also be live-streamed on our Facebook Page.
For over three decades, Israeli farmers have been employing Thai migrant laborers in their agricultural sector. This has also been facilitated through bilateral agreements between Israel and Thailand, which regulate the recruitment and employment of these migrant workers. However, migrant workers from Thailand in Israel’s agriculture sector often face health risks and poor well-being due to work conditions and loopholes in legislation and the health system.
Dr. Yahel Kurlander, an expert sociologist, studies various aspects of the labor market concerning Thai migrant workers. Her research covers the impacts of COVID-19 on non-Israeli migrant workers, work conditions of agricultural labor from Thailand, and the experiences of women workers employed in male-dominated occupations, with a focus on the agricultural sector in Israel. During this event, she will explore the challenges impacting the lives and rights of Thai migrant workers in Israel.
Speaker’s Profile
Dr. Yahel Kurlander is a Sociologist of the labor market who specializes in migration, agricultural labor, and gender. She is a Lecturer in Sociology at the Department of Multi-Disciplinary Studies and Human Services, Tel-Hai Academic College. Kurlander received her Ph.D. from the Department of Sociology at Haifa University. Her Ph.D. analyses agricultural labor migration from Thailand to Israel and deals mainly with patterns of the recruitment industry in light of a bilateral agreement between Israel and Thailand (1983-2013). In the course of her Ph.D. work, she was a visiting scholar (2013-2015) in the Geography Department in the Economic Geography Unit of the University of Zurich. Kurlander is an avid activist and passionately partakes in groups fighting for gender and migration issues. See her website at https://yahel-kurlander.co.il/home-page-en/.
Photo: Shiraz Grinbaum / Activestills.org
For more information/reservation, please email: info@seajunction.org.
Organizers
SEA Junction, established under the Thai non-profit organization Foundation for Southeast Asia Studies (ForSEA), aims to foster understanding and appreciation of Southeast Asia in all its socio-cultural dimensions, from arts and lifestyles to economy and development. Conveniently located at Room 408 of the Bangkok Art and Culture Centre or BACC (across MBK, BTS National Stadium), SEA Junction facilitates public access to knowledge resources and exchanges among students, practitioners and Southeast Asia lovers. For more information, see www.seajunction.org, join the Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/1693058870976440/ and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @seajunction
Institute for Population and Social Research (IPSR), Mahidol University was established in 1971 and has become one of Asia’s premier population research and training hubs. The Institute conducts research and provides training in population, sexual and reproductive health and development with a focus on Thailand and on neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia, with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life for all. For more information, see https://ipsr.mahidol.ac.th.
