Concept note – UN international Day of Persons with Disabilities
1 December 2016
Disability inclusive employment – whose business is it?
A conference on the role of private sector development in securing inclusive employment.
December 3rd is the UN’s international day of persons with disabilities. The Atlas-Alliance, the Norwegian Center for Human Rights (NCHR), Plan International Norway and Youth with Disabilities observe this day by organizing a one-day conference on the rights of persons with disabilities to work and employment. How will disability inclusion in the labor market advance inclusive sustainable development and growth?
The key questions we ask are:
· How may the private sector contribute to decent work and inclusive job creation for persons living with disabilities?
· How can we learn from innovative businesses’ disability inclusion practices?
Objectives
The objective of this conference is to increase awareness on how private companies, the State and civil society may apply the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities in global job creation initiatives and thus contribute to inclusive sustainable development and growth. We want to share success stories and discuss and learn from challenges by bringing together and comparing practical experiences from Norway with international experiences and research.
Why is disability inclusion relevant for private sector in development?
According to ILO, many of the world’s one billion persons with disabilities are excluded from the workforce due to various barriers including negative attitudes, inaccessible environments and insufficient or ineffective laws and policies. Studies indicate that in countries where data is available unemployment rates of persons with disabilities are up to twice as high as for non-disabled people.[1] Many people with disabilities are not registered either as employed or as unemployed, and are thus invisible in the labor market. Many are surviving either through the support of their families or through social security payments. Persons with disabilities represent a source of untapped potential in all countries.[2]
The right to decent work is embedded in the UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities (CRPD), Article 27. Further, the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development gives the international community, including States, private businesses and civil society, the impetus it needs to work together to generate inclusive and decent work opportunities. Importantly, the SDGs are Global Goals – they apply also within a Norwegian context. Sustainable development Goal 8: “Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all” includes the specific target to “achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities”.
The Norwegian Government has emphasized the importance of disability inclusion in its effort to achieve the SDGs. Further, persons with disabilities are one of the target groups in Norway’s white paper on human rights in its foreign policy and development cooperation, which also includes business and investments for development. The recently launched Government action plan on Women’s rights and gender equality[3], actually states that a priority will be given those groups who are most marginalized, including women with disabilities, in private sector development and employment.
Learning from practice
There are several ongoing global initiatives initiated by private companies, the UN, Governments and CSOs in order to facilitate employment of youth with disabilities. The ILO has also launched a global network on disability and business and developed guidelines for inclusive labor markets. The conference aims to provide a space for learning and sharing practical examples, innovative practices and first-hand experiences of youth with disabilities. Together we can generate new ideas on how persons with disability may be included in the global effort to achieve SGD 8 and facilitate implementation of the CRPD.
Target group
The target groups for the conference are private companies, state authorities, development actors and civil society organizations including organizations of persons and youth with disabilities.
2
[1] ILO, Global Disability and Business Network
[2] ILO, Study on work and employment of persons with disabilities Human Rights Council, 2013
[3] «Frihet, makt og muligheter - Handlingsplan for kvinners rettigheter og likestilling i utenriks- og utviklingspolitikken 2016-2020», UD, 2016