Working in Kiryat Gat: Then and Now

On the way to Beersheba, the capital of the Negev, lies Kiryat Gat. The city's location was not chosen by accident. Ashkelon, Beersheba, Ashdod and Rehovot are roughly 30–40 minutes away by car. Highway 6 passes nearby and connects the city to much of the country. Thanks to that road, central Israel and Jerusalem became reachable in approximately 50–60 minutes; even Haifa could be reached in about two hours, according to the original article's estimates.

At first glance, finding work in Kiryat Gat might seem difficult. But the city's industrial growth tells a different story. Founded in 1972 near the boundary between Israel's coastal plain and the Negev, Kiryat Gat has changed considerably over the years. Local residents describe dramatic development. Intel chose Kiryat Gat as the site of a major semiconductor plant. Another technology company, HP (Hewlett-Packard), also established operations there.

The industrial zone has metallurgical businesses and the major Israeli sugar producer Sugat. Smaller and medium-sized food companies, including Hamama, also operate in the area.

As noted above, the city's location is highly convenient for transport. This encouraged the development of a large logistics center. By 2018, facilities operated by firms such as Globus and Flying Cargo had opened. The original article anticipated that the logistics project would be completed by 2022, with numerous warehouses and distribution centers operating across an area described as 18 square kilometers. That was a forecast at the time, not a verified current status.

Kiryat Gat is a development city, and its residential construction has also expanded. The original article highlighted the new Karmei Gat neighborhood, which was expected to add 7,500 apartments and increase the city's population by 25%. These figures describe plans reported at the time.

Work in Kiryat Gat — view available jobs