Thousands of single mothers who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus crisis are at risk of losing a major part of their child-support payments. Many single mothers get child support payments from Israel’s National Insurance Institute, but how much they receive is dependent on their salary. Since 2002, unemployment payments are considered a separate category, not a replacement for a salary. Under current law, single mothers who lose their jobs thus suffer a double financial blow. Not only will their children have to make do with their mother’s reduced income, their right to child support is affected.
“In practice most of the living expenses fall on the women, with whom the children live most of the time, and now it isn’t clear how they’ll manage. The state must provide solutions in such instances”, says attorney Keren Horowitz, director of the Rackman Center at Bar-Ilan University, member of the Coalition to Ensure Child Support Payments, to Haaretz’ journalist Lee Yaron.
