EMPLOYMENT- HORIZON

Better Employment Opportunities

For People With Disabilities

SPECIAL REPORT

[Date]

Foreword

One European in ten has a disability: the European Union’s unceasing support for the full integration of people with disabilities is the testimony of our commitment to a European social model that combines economic competitiveness with social solidarity.

The Union has been actively promoting better living and working conditions for people with a disability for many year. The Commission Communication on Equality of Opportunity for people with disabilities, adopted in July 1996, sets out the current European strategy. In Member States, in non-governmental organisations and among the social partners, new approaches have been emerging. We are all working to support the right of people with disabilities to the same opportunities as other citizens. They also must share the benefits of economic and social development.

Yet access to employment opportunities remains problematic for people with disabilities. Their rate of unemployment is up to three times higher than average and they are often unemployed for longer periods. Education, training, welfare and other support systems do not always adequately meet their special needs. They therefore have greater difficulty achieving their maximum potential in the labour market. This situation is often exacerbated by employers and trade unions who may not be informed or aware of the new possibilities in this area.

Removing obstacles to equal training and employment opportunities for individuals with a disability has for some years been an objective of the European Social Fund. The first HORIZON Community Initiative (1990-1994) showed that good practice existed across the Member States. However, it was a long way from being standard practice in the labour market. Support was therefore crucial for the further development of innovative measures and the integration of good practice across the board. The launch of EMPLOYMENT-HORIZON in 1994 further demonstrates the European Union’s continuing commitment to people with a disability.

With a European Union contribution of over ECU 500 million for the period to 1994-99, the HORIZON Initiative will widen the employment opportunities for people with disabilities through information, training and job creation measures. Its success depends on the vision and determination of a wide spectrum of agencies and organisations. Most important, however, that success can be achieved only with the active participation of people with disabilities themselves. Only with their involvement will we find the best solutions for their full integration into all working life.

Pádraig Flynn

Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs

EMPLOYMENTHORIZON

Exploring innovative solutions - the Community Initiatives

EMPLOYMENT-HORIZON is the 'strand' of the EMPLOYMENT Community Initiative, which supports Member States and the Commission in working together to overcome the challenges which disabled people face in their integration into work and society.

A fuller description of the EMPLOYMENT Community Initiative and of its different strands is to be found below. This report refers to EMPLOYMENT-HORIZON simply as HORIZON.

Within the overall context of the EMPLOYMENT Initiative, HORIZON aims to improve the employability and job prospects of disabled people by :

  • the matching of training and work experience with information and support measures;
  • improving the delivery of services based on the individual needs of people with disabilities and strengthens cooperation between the professionals and actors in the field;
  • changing attitudes amongst employers, trade unions and other local actors in pursuit of more holistic approaches;
  • involving people with disabilities as actors in their own progress towards open employment.

HORIZON provides funding to projects which explore new ways of meeting its overall aims. The impact of these projects is reinforced by grouping them in transnational partnerships, as learning from others and exchanging ideas reinforces innovation. Priority is given to experimental projects which fall under one or more of the following headings or Measures :

  • developing new systems of training, counselling and employment including adapting the work place to new technologies;
  • training with appropriate guidance, work placement and support programmes;
  • supporting job creation and innovative measures to secure employment, including new public and private partnerships;
  • raising awareness amongst employers and amongst disabled people themselves.

The overall budget for HORIZON is estimated at around ECU 950 million of which the European Union provides at least 500 million ECU.

The first call for project proposals was launched in 1995 and, to date, Member States have selected some 635 projects to participate in the first phase of projects, which will run for two to three years. During 1997, a second phase of projects will be selected with the result that, by the end of the programme in 1999, over 1200 projects throughout the Union will have explored new pathways for integrating disabled people into employment.

National Support Structures (NSS) were appointed by each Member State to support the work of the projects especially in relation to their transnational activities. They also act as a link with the Commission’s Support Unit, EUROPS, based in Brussels.

Where to find information on . . .

EMPLOYMENTHORIZON...... 3

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION...... 5

THE EUROPEAN UNION RESPONSE...... 5

Policy Development...... 5

The European Union’s Structural Funds...... 6

WHAT MEMBER STATES ARE DOING...... 7

HORIZON IN ACTION...... 8

TARGET GROUPS...... 8

ACTIVITIES...... 9

IMPLEMENTING ORGANISATIONS...... 15

LESSONS FROM THE FIRST PHASE...... 15

SELECTING PROJECTS FOR THE SECOND PHASE...... 17

THE EMPLOYMENT INITIATIVE AT A GLANCE...... 17

The information on projects presented in this report is based on information provided by the Member States.

PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

Disability has many faces: people can have a physical disability, suffer mental illness, or experience learning difficulties. They may be deaf, dyslexic, paraplegic or have suffered a nervous breakdown. Some live with disability from birth. Others become disabled following an accident or illness. Each person with a disability thus faces a unique set of challenges in their integration into society and working life.

How Many People In Europe Have A Disability ?

The absence of reliable statistics is a first indication of the disadvantage which people with disabilities face. Many are so discouraged about finding employment that they do not even register as unemployed.

In 1996, an estimated 40 million people in Europe had a disability. Of these, around 50% were of working age. In Member States where information is available, the percentage is not expected to change substantially over the next 25 years. There are thus an estimated 20 million people of working age who have a disability.

Of all disabled people, those with a chronic mental illness are among the most vulnerable to social exclusion. Unemployment is common and a third of homeless people have serious psychological or psychiatric problems.

How Many Cannot Find Paid Work ?

Five Member States record the number of people with a disability who, according to national definitions, are capable of working. The estimated rate of unemployment varies between 18% and 82%. Compared to the unemployment rates for the active population as a whole, the rate of unemployment for people with disabilities is two to three times higher.

Quality Jobs For People With Disabilities ?

In its report marking the end of the Decade for People with Disabilities, the United Nations noted that people with disabilities are often employed in low-paid, low-skilled jobs. For many people, a lack of adequate education and training may be the reason. Nevertheless, it is access to quality training leading to quality jobs that is particularly problematic for people with disabilities.

Additional Barriers Caused By Gender, Race And Age

Women and people from ethnic minority backgrounds face additional discrimination on the labour market. Similarly, older people suffer from the widespread practice of “systematic discrimination against workers aged fifty and over”. (Eurolinkage, 1993). This is particularly threatening for older people as disability often increases with age.

THE EUROPEAN UNION RESPONSE

Policy Development

In July 1996 the Commission adopted a Communication on Equality of Opportunity for people with disabilities[1] which set on new European strategy. This strategy highlights four essential elements:

  • Empowering people with disabilities for participation in society
  • Removing barriers to their participation by:

respecting autonomy and independence

readjusting education and training systems to facilitate participation

readjusting welfare and other support to facilitate participation

moving to a person-centred approach in the design and implementation of support services

ensuring a seamless provision of services

  • Opening up various spheres of society by:

upholding the equal civic status of people with disabilities

promoting employment for people with disabilities as a key to integration

  • Nurturing public opinion to be receptive to strategies on equality of opportunity for people with disabilities.

The European Union’s Structural Funds

European Union intervention in support of structural adjustment is now very significant. The Union’s Structural Funds amount to almost ECU 30,000 million annually. They account for over one third of the Union’s annual budget or nearly 0.5% of annual GDP. There are four structural funds: the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF), the Guidance Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) and the Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG).

The European Social Fund accounts for around one third of the total budget for the Structural Funds. Its principal aim is to promote investment in human resources. It has the specific objectives of combating long-term unemployment and improving the employability of young people and, since 1993, of promoting adaptation to industrial change. It aims to integrate those excluded from the labour market and to promote the principle of equal opportunities. It contributes to the financing of vocational training and employment support measures and to improvements in education systems.

The Community Initiatives

Some 9% of the Structural Funds’ budget is set aside for Community Initiatives. These are special programmes whose guidelines are established by the Commission according to European priorities. There are four main features which distinguish Community Initiatives from other forms of Structural Funds assistance:

  • Innovation
    Each initiative aims to stimulate policy change by supporting innovative activities and the wider dissemination of their results;
  • Transnationality
    The Initiatives aim to develop a European response to problems being faced across the Union, and therefore transnational cooperation is a required element for participation;
  • Multiplier effect
    Approaches that are developed should, in time, become part of the mainstream practices in the Member States;
  • Bottom-up
    The “bottom-up” rather than “top-down” approach means mobilising the expertise and experience of a broad base of players who are active in the field and are well placed to identify local, regional and multi-sectoral problems and needs;

There are currently fourteen Community Initiatives in operation under the Structural Funds. Two of these, Employment and Adapt, are funded mainly by the European Social Fund and are targeted specifically at improving the functioning of the European labour market, particularly to assist vulnerable groups. There is also a major ESF involvement in the other twelve Community Initiatives: Interreg and Interreg C, Leader, Regis, Rechar, Resider, Konver, Retex, Sme, Urban, Pesca and the Peace and Reconciliation Programme, for Northern Ireland.

WHAT MEMBER STATES ARE DOING

Responsibility for the economic and social integration of people with disabilities lies mainly with the Member States. The last two decades have seen considerable developments in the variety of provision.

  • What Legislation Supports Equal Rights for People with Disabilities ?

The legislative framework concerning people with disabilities varies enormously between Member States. Most promote employment through legal requirements such as quota systems. Some, like Germany and Portugal, include an anti-discrimination clause in their Constitution. Others have a framework legislation providing a basis for the integration of disabled people through vocational rehabilitation, vocational training and work placement. Only a few Member States, such as Spain, have a general human rights provision regarding people with disabilities.

  • What Other Measures have Member States Developed ?

All countries promote the employment of people with disabilities through financial incentives for employers. These include : compensation for reduced productivity; reimbursement of the costs of adapting the workplace; and bonus payments.

  • What Provision Exists for Rehabilitation, Training and Guidance ?

Models of assessment and flexible training have been developed for people with all types of disability. Sometimes this has been achieved with assistance from the European Structural Funds. Additional measures include:

developing skills among trainers, guidance workers and other specialised support staff;

promoting real partnership between colleges, special centres and local employers;

establishing placements in protected employment as an integral part of rehabilitation and training;

ensuring that training leads to a recognised qualification or part-qualification.

  • Supporting Employment

Changing attitudes and policy developments at national and regional level have increased access to employment by individuals with a disability. However, the same attention does not appear to have been given to their integration into open employment. For those whose needs cannot be met in the open labour market, an increasing range of protected employment opportunities are available.

Sheltered workshops are large-scale providers of work experience. Increasingly, they are expected to move from social to more business-oriented practices. Such a change can significantly reduce a worker’s prospects for transition to open employment.

Social enterprises are a growing form of protected employment provision. They offer the flexibility of meeting individual needs whilst adapting to new relationships between public policy and markets.

Supported employment meets the needs of the disabled person through personal support and physical adaptations to the workplace, while matching the requirements of the enterprise.

In 1995, 150 European cities signed the Barcelona Declaration which contained commitments to promote equal opportunities for people with disabilities. These include ensuring access to information; adapted housing and transport; cultural, sporting and recreational activities; urban spaces. Above all is the commitment to their participation in all the decision-making processes that affect their lives.

HORIZON IN ACTION

This section of the report examines the main characteristics of the 635 projects which were selected for HORIZON in 1995, and illustrates main issues through specific project descriptions.

Project Overview : / TARGET
GROUPS

Some projects mention no specific group because their actions are aimed at people with a variety of disabilities. This is particularly the case with projects focusing on awareness-raising and information. The majority of the projects, however, have goals that focus on people with a particular disability.

Physical difficulties

The project beneficiaries fall into four groups : people with physical disabilities; people with learning difficulties; people suffering from mental illness; and people with sensorial disabilities. Of these, people with physical disabilities form the largest group. This trend is seen in all Member States. The group also includes a great diversity of people with physical disabilities, including cerebral palsy, epilepsy, spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries.

Learning difficulties

Projects aimed at people with learning difficulties can be found in most Member States. In Greece, Ireland and the Netherlands, up to a third of the projects address this target group.

Mental illness

Almost 20% of HORIZON projects indicate that they target people suffering from mental illness. Germany and Spain, in particular, seem to place a pronounced emphasis on promoting employment opportunities for this target group.

Sensorial disabilities

Overall, about 8% of projects address this group but the percentage in Denmark is considerably higher. Among the different forms of sensorial disabilities, most projects are aimed at people with hearing impairments.

Young people

The notion that preparing people with disabilities for employment will be most effective if it commences at an early age is reflected in the fact that 10% of projects deal specifically with young people.

Women

Many women with disabilities face a double disadvantage when trying to enter the labour market. In spite of this, only 2% of projects address this specific group.

Trainers, counsellors, social workers

The primary direct target group of HORIZON is people with disabilities. However, project activities can target other groups, such as trainers, counsellors and social workers. Almost a quarter of HORIZON projects focus activities on these groups, with more than a third of these addressing trainers within the context of ‘training-of-trainer’ projects.

Employers - a missing target group

Only 1% of HORIZON projects mention employers as their direct target group. These projects mostly provide training for employers in order to involve them actively in the process of integrating people with disabilities into the workplace.

Project Overview : / ACTIVITIES

The five broad groups of activities which can be identified are: training, job creation, guidance, new technologies and integrated approaches.

1.A Holistic Approach To Vocational Training

As many people with disabilities will have had only limited access to training, most projects focus on the development of training programmes. However, training alone is not sufficient to enable people with disabilities to enter the labour market. Most projects therefore incorporate several elements in their activities. For example, training might be combined with methods of assessment, guidance, activities to promote employment creation or awareness-raising.