The overall integration of Russian immigrants has been “very successful,” says Jack Habib, the institute’s director. But many Soviet immigrants suffered “downward mobility” because they couldn’t find jobs matching their professional qualifications. About 25 percent of Soviet immigrants have “significant financial problems,” he says, including many who are now elderly and dependent on government aid because they arrived without savings or retirement benefits.
Arrivals from Western Europe are likely to have more financial resources, but the question is whether Israel will be able to hold on to them. The University of Pennsylvania’s Lustick estimates that 40 percent to 50 percent of people emigrating to Israel from Western countries eventually leave again. “A lot of people come to Israel with shining ideas in their heads, and they find the country’s not like that. It’s expensive, and Israel is a pretty rough, highly competitive environment.” That can be especially true for Western Europeans accustomed to generous social protections.
As for aliyah, Lustick sees one group that only partially fulfills the idea: Some wealthy Europeans and Americans buy luxury apartments in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv but stay there only part of the time. “It’s flex-aliyah,” he says.
Article Appeared @http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-20/why-israel-wants-europe-s-jews-hint-not-just-to-shield-them-from-terrorists-