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Silhouettes of laptop and mobile device users are seen next to a screen projection of Microsoft logo. Photo: Reuters / Dado Ruvic / Illustration.
CTech – As Israel yet again escalates its coronavirus-fighting measures and employers in various industry sectors prepare for extensive layoffs, Microsoft Israel is bucking the trend. The company announced Saturday its intention to hire an additional 200 employees for its research and development center in Israel. The positions the company is recruiting for include software engineers, product managers, and data analysts, among others.
In December, Israeli entrepreneur Assaf Rappaport stepped down as Microsoft’s head of research and development in Israel. Last month, Michal Braverman-Blumenstyk was appointed as the new head.
Microsoft’s research and development center in Israel was founded in 1991, and was the company’s first research outpost outside the US. It currently employs some 1,500 people in three locations: central coastal town Herzliya, northern port city Haifa, and Nazareth. Braverman-Blumenstyk will be the center’s fourth manager to date and the first woman to hold the position.
Also on Saturday, Intel, Israel’s largest non-governmental employer, announced that it would pay for 15 days of childcare services for employees who need it, after the government mandated the closure of all educational institutions, including kindergartens and daycares, special education systems, youth camps, and boarding schools as of Sunday.