At its meeting on Sunday, the cabinet will appoint Tel Aviv University Professor of Economics Zvi Eckstein as deputy governor of the Bank of Israel. The unexpected pick by Governor of the Bank of Israel Prof. Stanley Fischer was formulated in secrecy over a long time, and was made with the consent of Interim Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and new Minister of Finance Avraham Hirchson.
Eckstein’s appointment was kept secret from senior Bank of Israel officials and its workers committee because of incessant leaks of information from the central bank.
Eckstein has known Fischer since his doctoral studies in the US. Eckstein’s main areas of expertise are labor economics, monetary policy, and Jewish history. His main research interest is labor migration. He is a strong supporter of instituting a negative income tax and policies for encouraging joining the labor force, in other words, workfare rather than welfare.
Eckstein’s appointment signals a stronger and broader Bank of Israel intervention in economic policy, especially in welfare policy.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on May 4, 2006
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