The Finance Ministry is updating its estimates of the economic cost of reserve duty to the economy, setting the average cost of one month of reserve service at NIS 53,000 for a man and NIS 27,000 for a woman. The revision follows an analysis published on Tuesday by the Chief Economist’s Department, showing that the income of most reservists is tens of percentage points higher than that of non-serving members of their age group.
The analysis found that 83% of those absent from work due to reserve duty are non-Haredi Jewish men aged 25–44, despite accounting for only 36% of the total workforce. According to the analysis, the income of reservists in this group is approximately 42% higher than that of non-Haredi Jews of the same age who do not serve in the reserves.
The fact that the average salary of reservists is higher than that of the non-serving population led the Finance Ministry to reassess the economic cost of reserve duty to the economy. According to the previous calculation, conducted in March 2024, the economic cost of reserve service for non-Haredi Jewish men aged 22–30 was estimated at NIS 33,000 per month per reservist, while for those aged 31–39, the cost was estimated at around NIS 54,000 per month per reservist. However, this calculation was based on the average income of the entire group, without separately identifying reservists within it.
Now that the analysis has shown that reservists earn, on average, around 42% more than other members of the same group who do not serve in the reserves, the Finance Ministry estimates that the cost to the economy of one month of reserve duty is approximately NIS 39,000 for a non-Haredi Jewish reservist aged 22–30, and around NIS 68,000 for those aged 31–39.
This cost reflects the loss of economic output, the loss of seniority and experience in the labor market, the impact on the economic activity of the reservist’s spouse or partner, and the consequences of postponing academic studies.
For non-Haredi Jewish women, the update resulted in the opposite outcome, lowering the estimate, as the revised calculations show that the average salary of female reservists is relatively low compared with that of their reference group.
More Students and More Young Fathers
The Finance Ministry’s analysis also found that within the main group of reservists, the proportion of students is relatively high (13%, compared with 6% among non-serving people of the same age and sociodemographic group), as is the proportion of fathers with young children (63%, compared with 51%).
The Chief Economist’s Department emphasized that prolonged reserve duty among students could disrupt their studies, thereby increasing the personal and economic cost of service beyond the period of absence itself. Conversely, the gap in the proportion of students may instead reflect the greater availability of students for reserve duty compared with other employed people.
The high proportion of fathers with young children highlights the additional impact of reserve duty on household well-being, as well as on the reservists’ partners and their ability to participate fully in the labor market.
Alongside this, the analysis found that the proportion of self-employed workers among reservists is relatively low (8%, compared with 14%). This is attributed to the fact that prolonged reserve duty for self-employed workers can force them to suspend their businesses and suffer significant losses in income, whereas salaried employees can generally return to their jobs once their service ends. However, the report emphasized that even among salaried employees, prolonged absences can affect working hours, promotion opportunities and career development.
The number of workers absent from their jobs due to reserve duty has fluctuated since the beginning of the Iron Swords War in line with security developments. The peak was recorded in November 2023, when 154,000 people were absent from work due to reserve service. In October 2024, the number of reservists absent from work stood at 70,000 amid the campaign in the north; in June 2025, it stood at 57,000 amid Operation Rising Lion; and in March 2026, it reached 71,000 amid Operation Roaring Lion. In May and June 2026, the number of workers absent from their jobs due to reserve duty stood at 24,000 and 21,000, respectively.