Unemployment in Israel has jumped from 3.6% before the coronavirus crisis to 16.5% as employees are laid off and sent on unpaid leave. 511,965 people have newly registered with the Israel National Employment Service (INES) since the beginning of the month, although the INES reports that the pace at which new people are registering is slowing significantly. Between Saturday night at 6pm and 6am this morning, only 8,050 more people registered on the INES website. RELATED ARTICLES 600,000 Israelis seen qualifying for unemployment pay Israeli law firms cut salaries, put staff on unpaid leave The INES attributes this slowing to the fact that the first wave of newly unemployed from the tourism, hotel, civil aviation, catering, entertainment and leisure, and similar businesses has petered out. The INES nevertheless adds that it is too early to tell whether it has come to a halt, or whether additional sectors will also enter the picture. Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on March 22, 2020 © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2020