After completing this resource, the learner will be able to:
- Describe the landscape of disability organisations and agencies in their own country and identify crucial characteristics of successful supportive frameworks and coalitions;
- Develop a comparative perception of legal frameworks and best practices across EU countries and correlate them with the specific context they are established in;
- Explain the meaning of legislations and policies about disability in their own country that are relevant to the rights of people with disability, with a specific focus in labour market;
- Correlate the meaning of national or regional law and policies to the specific national or regional context so as to be able to advocate for positive changes in their domestic context;
- Spot opportunities to transfer existing good practices to their own context
This module is meant to help learners get acquainted to basic knowledge regarding the legal and institutional framework (meaning the agencies, the organised groups of professionals, policy makers, civil society, associations etc.), best practices and references which form the environment within which disabled people and the professionals or their families struggle for their inclusion in the labour market and workplace in general. The scope of the module is comparative, including examples and regulations across the EU (not only the EU partner countries) so as to help learners draw the best aspects of the frameworks which are described throughout the module. This way, we hope to encourage them in prioritising needs, opportunities and necessary changes in their domestic local, national or regional context. The module follows a “pointing out’’ line, avoiding to “bombard” learners with a huge load of info. Instead, learners who wish to deepen in the material will be referred to external sources. Consequently, the ultimate goal is to make learners form a big picture of the situation regarding the inclusion and integration of persons with disabilities across the EU. BRIDGES partnership strongly believes that this is the best way to boost the sustainability of the learning material and learning outcomes.
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| Disability |
In this module, disability, apart from a factual condition, is treated as a legal term connected with recognised rights. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) “Disability is conceived as an umbrella term for impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions. It denotes the negative aspects of the interaction between a person’s health condition(s) and that individual’s contextual factors (environmental and personal factors).” |
| Organisations and agencies |
All types of public or private bodies, entities, associations acting as a group of professionals, activists, consultants, supporters, regardless of their legal personality who have the inclusion of disabled people in the cenre of their scope of activity, interests, policies, interventions or in their top priorities list. |
| Legislation |
It might refer either to typically binding rules (decrees, laws, constitutional stipulations, EU regulations, EU or International Treaties and Convention) or so called ‘’soft law’’ (including national, EU or international strategies, guidelines published by executive or legislative bodies etc). |
| Policies |
Any type of institutional, public or private interventions which produce a framework of action in favour or against disabled people’s right to inclusion or workplace integration, regardless of their legally binding nature. |
| Good practices |
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) “a good practice is not only a practice that is good, but a practice that has been proven to work well and produce good results, and is therefore recommended as a model. It is a successful experience, which has been tested and validated, in the broad sense, which has been repeated and deserves to be shared so that a greater number of people can adopt it.” |
| Rule of law |
“The authority and influence of law in society, especially when viewed as a constraint on individual and institutional behaviour; (hence) the principle whereby all members of a society (including those in government) are considered equally subject to publicly disclosed legal codes and processes.” |
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| EU |
European Union |
| WHO |
World Health Organisation |
| FAO |
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |
| IEFP |
Employment and Vocational Training Institute (Instituto de Emprego e Formação Professional – IEFP) – Portugal |
| NDA |
National Disability Authority (Ireland) |
| ICF |
International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health by the World Health Organisation |
| UN |
United Nations |
| CRPD |
UN Disability Rights Committee |
| OHCRC |
UN Disability Rights Committee |
| ILO |
International Labour Organisation |
| EEC |
European Economic Community |
| WAM |
Willing Able Mentoring Programme (Ireland) |
Despite the great range of national, EU and international regulations regarding the state and governmental obligations regarding the treatment that disabled people should receive but also the opportunities for inclusion and integration they should be offered, the reality in lots of EU Member-States is much different from theory. Significant gaps in the institutional mechanisms (caused by several reasons such as the economic crisis, the Covid-19 situation etc.), lack of coordination, a monolithic “medical” perception of inclusion, are some of the obstacles that disabled people and their supporting professionals or family members are continuously facing. On the other hand, the biggest problem is located in the field of training for professionals. Few training opportunities, the lack of national strategies, scattered staff around the EU countries asked to emphasise on their specific working environment and other factors, prevent professionals and family members from expanding their supporting approach, enrich their knowledge and leverage their supporting services.
That is exactly the gap that Disability Organisations and Agencies are struggling to cover across the EU. From volunteer supporting groups to semi-governmental organisations, and from NGOs to large foundations supported by donations or other funds constitute a realm of bees that try to overcome obstacles, lack of organisation and coordination. Their activity varies from mere activism or syndicalism to specialised service provision. In the end of the day, they are the ones who maintain the hope both for disabled people and supporting professionals or family members. Getting familiar with some of them will provide the learner with precious references which will permit the comparison between the domestic practice and the practice abroad. After all, this is the meaning of a training for professionals: questioning a situation that they are used to.
Cyprus is one the most characteristic examples of lack of systematization in the examined field. Despite that, a broad scope of organisations and agencies give a day-to-day fight to overcome this situation. ‘’MERA’’ center (“Mera” means ‘’day” in Greek) for psychic disabilities hosts a multidisciplinary team (occupational therapists, psychologists, social workers and others) who support disabled people towards their integration into employment and labour. Despite the dynamic of the supporting team, very few out of the total number of beneficiaries achieve to move forward to the next steps of integration. This is once again the result if the fact that, once they are out, the trained disabled people are not offered enough opportunities. The Brief Systemic Dialogical Therapy Institute of Nicosia offers a training course for professionals which comprises developing skills while working with people with heavy psychic disabilities, like schizophrenia. It has already become a renowned reference hub. The prominent and historic School for Blind People implements a daily training programme in order to help blind people get a job at call centres of hospitals or large-scale services and big companies. At the School, disabled people also receive training on arts and crafts. The Cyprus Confederation of Disabled People’s Associations (KYSOA) operates from since 1984 and holds the official role of Social Partner in all institutional discussions and official negotiations regarding disability. One of the Confederation’s goals is to create a European political and cultural framework based on the abolishment of discriminations. The Confederation is a Member of the European Disability Forum, thus, takes part in EU institutional procedures. The Pancyprian Association for People with Autism offers precious support to future employees. Their achievements are worth-notable since they achieved to help autistic people get hired in SMEs or bigger companies (like call centres) while being guided by the Association’s staff and multidisciplinary groups. What is interesting regarding is that the multidisciplinary groups assess the individual’s skills, interests and preferences before drafting their individual plan of potential employment. From the government’s part, the Department of Social Integration of the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance of the Republic of Cyprus, offers several types of programmes and plans addressed to people with disabilities including Individualised Support Services for disabled people looking for a job, funds to disabled people’s associations for training their members and hiring trainers for professional supporting staff and family members, funds for launch social entrepreneurship etc. Though the fact that hundreds of families depend from the monthly allowance of their disabled members functions as counter-motivation for families and members to chase these opportunities.
It is estimated that in Greece there are about 1,000,000 people with disabilities (1 in 10 citizens, approximately, is a person with a disability); however, despite this number Greece is failing to provide access for people with disabilities to education, employment and society and added to that, people with disabilities face new cuts in their allowances and medical care (especially during the economic crisis – since 2008). Very often the most vulnerable of them, such as children, who have been abandoned by their parents or are self-employed, are “trapped” in institutions, in the “Care Centres”, which do not meet the appropriate specifications to offer a healthy and decent living. Insufficient state care, however, is not the only cause for this situation. Despite this adversity, there are examples of organisations which achieve to overcome it. The Vocational Training Center ‘’MARGARITA” (in Greek it means “daisy”), for instance, is a Social Care Agency and operates as a Centre for Recovery – Rehabilitation, Day Care and Day Care Centre in Athens. The association offers the following services to people with mild and moderate mental disabilities aged 14 to 25 years old:
• education
• special vocational training
• professional employment and support
• training in supported living
• accompanying programs
The programme is aimed at enhancing everyday life skills (e.g. cooking, self-service, traffic education, etc.), general professional skills (e.g. responsibility, consistency, cooperation, etc.) and special professional skills (e.g. use of machinery and tools, use of professional techniques, etc.). So, the main aim of the association is the development of people with mental disabilities leading them to personal development, autonomy, social and professional integration of individuals. The association also provides people with mental disabilities with the opportunity to participate in sports, cultural and recreational activities
The Italian Association of People with Down Syndrome (AIPD) has been fighting for the rights of people with Down Syndrome for 40 years, including the right to have an adequate job placement. The association implements projects of job inclusion for people with intellectual disabilities, which start from reflecting and sharing objectives with families, up to providing practical suggestions to involve companies, evaluating and selecting candidates and finally tutoring the integration paths. The main tool used to support disabled people in their training towards employment is the Observatory on the World of Work. This entity carries out a consultancy service to companies, disabled adults and their families, in order to facilitate the match between supply and demand, monitoring the legislation in force and coordinating the operators of the territorial AIPD Sections who follow the first phases of insertion with a tutoring on the workplace.
At international level, the Netherlands-based Disability Inclusion Lab, created by Light for the World, plays an important role. It is a space where NGOs, disability organisations, governments and companies from different countries come together to make their programmes inclusive, carrying out innovative inclusion projects and providing expert advice. Stakeholders compare and develop practical solutions to overcome the barriers that prevent people with disabilities from participating equally in development and society. Through training and consultancy, knowledge is shared between different organisations, proven methods are structured and then made available to a wide audience.
The Employment and Vocational Training Institute (Instituto de Emprego e Formação Professional – IEFP) is a public institute dependent on the Minister of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security and is the entity responsible in general for national employment. Its mission is to promote the creation and quality of employment and to fight unemployment, through the implementation of active employment policies, namely vocational training. The IEFP is also responsible for the training and professional qualification of people with disabilities, in conjunction with the National Rehabilitation Institute. Moreover, there are 308 associations of people with disabilities in Portugal. Many of them have professional training programmes and professional insertion programmes and are supported by local IEFP delegations and the municipalities themselves. Despite the existence – thanks to this variety of organisations- of a training offer for people with disabilities, both professionally and academically, the difficulties are later registered in the professional insertion of people with disabilities due to several factors, such as stigmatisation and the prejudices of employers related to productivity. A Secretary of State for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities, led itself by a disabled person (blind), depends on the Minister of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security and ensures compliance of the Government Program, that included several points specifically related to the professional integration of people with disabilities, referring to the issue of accessible public transport by citizens with disabilities or reduced mobility. The Portuguese National Rehabilitation Institute is a public institute, also dependent on the Minister of Labour Solidarity and Social Security, has responsibilities in the implementation and monitoring programs on specific areas for people with disabilities.
The National Disability Authority (NDA), is the independent statutory body that provides information and advice to the Government on policy and practice relevant to the lives of persons with disabilities. They have a role to assist the Minister for Justice and Equality in the co-ordination of disability policy. Their functions include research, developing and collaborating on the development of relevant statistics; assisting in the development of standards; developing codes of practice and monitoring the implementation of standards, codes and employment of persons with disabilities in the public service. They work through our Centre for Excellence in Universal Design to promote the universal design of the built environment, products, services and information and communication technologies so that they can be easily accessed and used by everyone, including persons with disabilities
Lebenshilfe agency has its own institution for this, it calls itself “inForm” and offers around 140 seminars, specialist days and workshops every year on the subject of people with disabilities. Among the training topics are: participation, self-representation, parents, family, relatives, association work, volunteering, personnel and organizational development, management, leadership, administration, ,office, organization, advice, communication, basics and concepts of pedagogical work, childhood and youth, vocational training, work, living in old age, health, psyche, clinical pictures, disorders, social policy, law, easy language, self-management, personal skills, outpatient offers, self-determination, participation, challenging behaviour, aggression, violence prevention, sexuality, accompanied parenthood, online seminars etc.
One important institution in helping the labour insertion of persons with disabilities are the “Centros especiales de empleo” (Special Employment Centres), which work on the implementation of the directive measures for improving employment in the private sector. Despite this, the economic activity rate among persons with disabilities is, as mentioned before, significantly below the national average.
During an era where the rule of law is doubted or even undermined, it is very important for a professional who supports people with disabilities to overview how the international community and the organised disability rights lobbies achieved to integrate their expectations into significant legal documents, both at a local and at an international level. As long as Justice operates, laws also have to rule.
So, in order to better understand the rights of persons with disabilities, you have to better understand the legal base of these rights and, additionally, the history and the philosophical background of them. Because, as it happens with all categories of rights, they must never been taken for granted. On the opposite, rights are the continuous struggle to reveal their tangible content out of the legal phrasing of a decree, a national law, a constitutional stipulation, an EU directive, up to an international convention.
What follows is a brief overview of the international legal framework, boosted with some examples of the incorporation of international obligations within the national legal spheres.
Moving from the international to the national/local level, the presentation of the legal framework follows the following order:
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’Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities’’): according to the official UN website “Among the major outcomes of the Decade of Disabled Persons was the adoption of the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities by the General Assembly on 20 December 1993 (resolution 48/96 annex). Although not a legally binding instrument, the Standard Rules represent a strong moral and political commitment of Governments to take action to attain equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities. The rules serve as an instrument for policy-making and as a basis for technical and economic cooperation.” UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities its Optional Protocol and the UN Disability Rights Committee (CRPD)
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The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol was launched on 13 December 2006 at UN Headquarters in New York. It is worth noting that the discussion for this prominent legal document took 4 years. According to the official UN website “the Convention is intended as a human rights instrument with an explicit, social development dimension. It adopts a broad categorization of persons with disabilities and reaffirms that all persons with all types of disabilities must enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms. It clarifies and qualifies how all categories of rights apply to persons with disabilities and identifies areas where adaptations have to be made for persons with disabilities to effectively exercise their rights and areas where their rights have been violated, and where protection of rights must be reinforced.”. The Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is the body of independent experts which σας created by the UN to monitor and evaluate implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by the signatory States
Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention of the International Labour Organisation (No. C159)
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The ILO is “the United Nations agency devoted to advancing opportunities for women and men, including persons with disabilities, to obtain decent and productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Its main aims are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment opportunities, enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue in handling work-related issues.”Following UN’s lines, the ILO has been in the front line of all workers’ rights, especially the most vulnerable, among whom disabled people.
Council Recommendation of 24 July 1986 on the employment of disabled people in the Community
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this recommendation was elaborated and launched by the Council of the European Communities, the ancestor of the EU. The recommendation was dedicated to the employment of disabled persons, with a special focus on the creation of new workplaces which could fit with disabled people’s needs. Another focal point of the Recommendation was sheltered employment. According to the Recommendation, Member States should, among others, prioritize enhancing training possibilities for disabled as a means for offering them a tangible opportunity for an active career development (86/379/EEC
Council Directive 2000/78/EC of 27 November 2000
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he Directive establishing a general framework for equal treatment in employment and occupation. Within the directive, disability along with other characteristics related to diversity – such as sexual orientation, racial or ethnic origin, religion etc.- falls under the protective umbrella against discrimination in the workplace. This specific Directive was meant to complement the Directive 2000/43/EC on equal treatment between persons irrespective of racial or ethnic origin and the Directive 2006/54/EC on equal treatment of men and women in matters of employment and occupation
Strategy for Disability of the Council of Europe 2017-2023
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“Promoting and protecting human rights of all persons and upholding democracy and the respect of the rule of law is the core of Council of Europe work. The protection of rights, safeguarded and guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights, applies to all, including persons with disabilities. The new Council of Europe Strategy on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2017–2023 was drafted in 2016 by Council of Europe member States in co-operation with civil society and other stakeholders.”
With respect to job placement, the turning point in Italy came with Law 68/1999 and subsequent updates and amendments, which have dictated the rules for the employment of people with disabilities, simplifying the procedures over the years to facilitate the process of integration. Law 68/99 gives the regions the task of organising the regional employment system with the mandate to ensure active labour and training policies through the enactment of regional laws. The desk research focuses mainly on the territory of the Emilia-Romagna Region, where InEuropa is based, citing the local regulations that strengthen the implementation of Law 68, with the establishment of an Emilia-Romagna regional fund for the employment of people with disabilities (Law 17/2005) and the subsequent Law 14/2015 which regulates the facilitation of the employment of people in vulnerable conditions, who do not have any type of certification and until then excluded from targeted placement services.
Law 4440/2016 and specifically article 25, facilitates the recruitment of people with disabilities in job positions in both the public and the wider public sector. The programme is aimed at private business, cooperatives, social bodies and solidarity economy, and generally at private sector employers who regularly engage in economic activity, as well as in local and second-level Local Government enterprises.
CYPRUS
- The ‘’Employment of People with Disabilities in the Public Sector (Special Rules)’’ Law of 2009 (146(I)/2009), it the pillar of integration of disabled people in the employment as regards the public sector. One of the most important rules which are imported by law is that 10% of the total public servants must be people with disabilities. A very detailed system of assessment of the disability and the professional skills accompany this rule. The law also stipulates the provision of technical and technological assistive equipment for disabled public servants but also the obligation of public services to adapt the respective workplaces accordingly. Moreover, special definitions are set up in order to facilitate disabled people who pass through exams as candidates of public sector job placements.
- On the other hand, since 2017, the Department of Labour of the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance, has been publishing “Plans for Increasing Motivation (among employers) for the Employment of People with Disabilities’’. These Plans are considered the pillar of employment of disabled people in the private sector .These plans aim at facilitating employers in hiring disabled people. The Plan is accompanied by a collection of manuals, questionnaires, visual material (posters) and other documents, as an effort to better explain the entire procedure to employers. The Plan also offers a remarkable amount as financial support to employers who hire disabled people. The amount varies according to each specific case.
- As an effort to intervene in a horizontal and holistic way, the Republic of Cyprus adopted the 1st National Strategy for Disability 2018-2028 which was established after the recommendations submitted to the Republic by the UN Disability Rights Committee (OHCRC). The 1st Strategy also reflects the principles set by the European Strategy for Disability 2010-2020 and the Strategy for Disability of the Council of Europe 2017-2023. The Aim of the 1st National Strategy is to define the vision, the values, the strategic goals and objectives of the Republic of Cyprus regarding the application of the rights of disabled people. The Strategy re-orientates all competent and relevant entities of the Republic towards actions which will boost the living standards disabled people.
- In parallel, the Republic of Cyprus recently adopted the 2nd National Action Plan for Disability 2018-2020. The plan unifies the efforts of several different Ministries under the same framework and it covers various fields of interest: independent living, employment, education services, transport and accessibility, health and rehabilitation services, awareness raising
PORTUGAL
- The Constitution of the Republic in article 71, incorporates the principle of equality and the right to integration.
- By Decree-Law n.º 29/2001 of 3rd February was established a policy of employment quotas for people with disabilities, with a degree of disability equal to or greater than 60% in the civil service. The Law n.º 38/2004 of 18th August, approved the National Disability Strategy and the Decree-Law n.º 34/2007 of 15th February, prohibits and punishes discrimination against people with disabilities.
- The Law n.º 7/2008 of 12 of February, establishes that the disabled worker has the same rights and is bound by the dame duties as other workers in accessing employment, training, promotion or professional career and working conditions, without prejudice to the specificities inherent to their own situation. According to this same law, the State must encourage and support the employer´s action in hiring disabled workers. In addition, the employer must adopt appropriate measures so that the disabled person has access to a job, can exercise it and progress in it.
- Within the scope of the Millennium Goals, the Government adopted goal 8.5 regarding the achievement, by 2030, of full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including young people and people with disabilities, and equal remuneration for work of equal value
IRELAND
- The Employment Equality Act (1998-2015) outlawed discrimination on the grounds of disability in employment, including training and recruitment. However, the Employment Equality Acts state that an employer is not obliged to recruit or retain a person who is not fully competent or capable of undertaking the duties attached to a job.
- The Equality Act 2004 states that individuals should not be discriminated (directly or indirectly) against nine grounds which include Gender, Civil Status, Family Status, Age, Race, Religion, Disability, Sexual Orientation, and membership of the Traveller community. Direct discrimination involves making a direct comparison e.g., making a comparison with someone who has a disability with another person with no disability. Indirect discrimination involves practices of policies which may appear to not discriminate actually have a discriminatory impact on that individual or group. The Equality Act aims to promote equality by forbidding discrimination in employment and vocational training.
- The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 states that there is an obligation on public bodies to be pro-active in employing people with disabilities. The act sets a 3% target for the employment of people with disabilities in the public service.The act establishes a basis to restrict the use of information from genetic testing for employment. This provides safeguards for the use of information obtained from genetic testing to ensure that people who may be affected by genetic disorders will not be subject to any unreasonable requirements from an employer.
- According to the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, employers must ensure the safety, health and welfare of all employees in their workplace. Special mention is made of employees with disabilities and employers are directed to take their needs into account, particularly with regard to doors, passageways, staircases, showers, washbasins, lavatories and workstations.
The history of EU common policies and practices has shown that when adaptability, adjustability and flexibility are missing, then the results are rarely the expected. Especially, when the discussion regarding good practices is about the inclusion and integration of disabled people in society and the labour market, these three key qualities are more than crucial for the success of practices. Consequently, especially within the semi-federal framework of the EU, good practices are the ones which can be transferred smoothly into different contexts and, above all, practices which can be altered and re-adapted into these different contexts.
Within the frame of this module, the BRIDGES partnership has chosen some characteristic good practices from the partner countries. The best way to go through them is as an overview, not as an exhaustive list. Given the scattered structure of support systems in some of the partner countries, one can identify hundreds of other good practices which, possibly, have never been published. Additionally, the Module features best practices from other EU countries.
1
The National Disability Authority has produced the Disability Equality Training, a short online training module to help staff to deal with customers with disabilities. The module is aimed at public sector staff in Ireland. The training module is open to everyone and it takes one hour to complete. The National Disability Authority states that staff who have attended disability equality training will be able to interact more confidently and more effectively with people who have disabilities and will need an ongoing programme of disability equality training.
Willing Able Mentoring (WAM) Programme is an initiative of AHEAD (Association for Higher Education Access and Disability). WAM is a work placement programme which aims to promote access to the labour market for graduates with disabilities and build the capacity of employers to integrate disability into the mainstream workplace. Participating employers are known as WAM Leaders and they collaborate with WAM to offer mentored, paid, work placements for graduates with disabilities. This partnership brings graduates with disabilities and employers together so that both can benefit from each other and ensure genuine learning opportunities for all. WAM is unique in that it seeks to engage and support employers in order to simultaneously develop the potential of employers and graduates with disabilities. Since 2005, The WAM Programme has provided over 400 placements for graduates with disabilities.
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EMPLAY Project, promoted by the Municipality of Cascais. Between 2016 and 2018, 6 partners organizations developed the Employability Tools Project, supported by the European Commission’s Erasmus+ Youth in Action program, within the framework of Strategic Youth Partnerships (Key Action 2 – Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices) – project nº 2016-2-PT02-KA205-003613, with the following objectives:
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- Increase young people´s willingness for entrepreneurship opportunities to develop employability and recognition of personal and professional skills;
- Create and develop 4 tools for employability, aimed at people who want to improve their employability and also at technicians who deal with employability issues;
- Contribute to the development of quality in support systems for employability;
- Promote cooperation between different entities form different countries and areas of activity (civil society organizations, companies, public organizations); – Support young people in the development of skills essential to employability.
Thus, the project was created by a group of trainers, community animators, career counselors and project managers, from 6 different organizations form Portugal, Belgium and Italy gathered ideas to build the 4 EMPLAY tools:
- Agenda: An agenda without fixed dates to organize the weeks, with suggested activities, questions, challenges and inspirations, around questions about “who I am” and “what I want to achieve at a professional level”;
- Game: A board game to discuss, think and learn about different dimensions of employability in a fun way (up to 15 players);
- App: A smartphone app (android and iPhone) in which users progress every time they solve challenges to their skills;
- Manual on employability skills: A practical manual to understand how to use the EMPLAY tools in educational or social intervention, which also includes a collection of activities to work employability skills with groups.
The tools can be used by students, people who are working or people looking for a job, as well as employability technicians, animators, social educators, teachers, among others. The national organizations that work with people with disabilities are already developing to work together in order to create the adaptation of the project tools for this target population.
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- Project “SIDE – Supporting Innovative Models For Deaf Youth Empowerment”, funded by Erasmus Plus (in partnership with organisations from Austria, Cyprus, Italy and Slovakia), developed a blended learning model based on visual languages/arts aiming at the acquisition of key and professional competences by deaf young people, so as to support their transition from education to work. The learning model included face-to-face non formal training activities (outdoor training, coaching, Improv-theatre) and distance learning activities based on professional didactic modules developed through videos and sign language in a virtual environment.
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- Bienal de Arte Contemporáneo organised by the Fundación ONCE, is a cultural event to exhibit works made by artists with disabilities. The project was organised for the first time in Madrid 2006 and has since been repeated multiple times. The Biennale is an attempt both to help artists with disabilities to establish themselves on the market, thus a labour insertion measure, and to normalise the relationships between persons with disabilities and the society at large. The project also takes into account the reality of the art scene and how regular labour insertion measures often would not work in this area, thus the project tries to cover an area that would otherwise be harder to reach.
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- Project ZIPP for people with a mental illness: carried out by the Klausenhof Academy on behalf of the Employment Agency. It is aimed at people who have been permanently disabled due to a mental illness and are therefore unable to pursue their previous job and who have become unemployed. This project gives them the opportunity to learn a commercial profession, which they can then practice in a less stressful environment. The main thing is to design the learning process so that it is adapted to the special conditions and requirements of the target group. The trainers are commerce teachers (accounting, purchasing etc.) continuously coached by a psychologist.
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- Project “PROFARM – Professional and personal empowerment in social farming” is funded with the support from the European Commission. The main objective is to experiment a model that can contribute to the wellbeing, professional/personal growth and the social integration of VET students with disabilities in the field of agricultural production. The final aim is to reshape horizontal integration through individuals with disabilities, their families, schools, social-health services and private partnerships, to facilitate the employment and social inclusion of young disabled persons through Social Farming. More in detail, the project has focused on identifying cross-policy synergies and multi-professional partnerships to ensure integrated services in favour of the user/student as a person. PROFARM activities has taken place in three European countries (Italy, Germany and the Netherlands), with a very different socio-economical and geographical asset. The strategic approach of PROFARM was based on four pillars assessed during the implementation of the national experimentations: case management approach; co-planning procedures and guidelines; career guidance and skills development; assessment of the social farming requirements.
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- co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme (Key Action 2, Strategic Partnerships), is the continuation of the previous project “A ValueAble Network”. The partners involved are based in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Turkey and Hungary. The main objective is the access of people with intellectual disabilities to the world of work in the hospitality sector (hotels, restaurants, fast food, etc.) through the consolidation and expansion of the European ValueAble Network, made up of companies that are favourable to employment inclusion.The third edition of the project will be in continuity with the previous two and will use the same tools: the brand, an app to make trainees and workers with disabilities more independent on the job, video tutorials for the training of company staff and a distance learning course for managers. In addition, four new tools will be developed:
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- a protocol aimed at hotel and restaurant chains
- an accreditation protocol for training agencies that intend to operate within ValueAble
- a HACCP course in highly understandable language
- a distance learning course for tutors of training agencies that intend to be accredited to operate within ValueAble and multimedia resources database.
- In order to test the four new tools, the project foresees internships locally and abroad, with members of the network
project, co-funded by Erasmus+, involves partners from Poland, Italy, France and Spain. The main objective of the project was to promote inclusive entrepreneurship for people with physical disabilities by developing a methodology based on work-based mentoring and coaching. The project wanted to: Develop guidance in the field of inclusive entrepreneurship for mentors of people with physical disabilities. Prepare an onlie training course for mentors of people with physical disabilities
Develop the business start-up guide for people with physical disabilities
Prepare an online training course for business start-ups for people with physical disabilities. The training course is divided into two types of online courses: the first type is designed for entrepreneurs and VET trainers, who are willing to mentor and coach people with disabilities, and serves to improve the skills of mentors or coaches to be able to help people with disabilities in evaluating and improving their sense of initiative, as well as to set new individual goals; the second type is dedicated to people with disabilities, to improve their skills in finding activities and economic sectors suitable for the development of a business or self-employment and in planning a start-up
