On 27 April we launched our 7th Human Rights Report, dedicated to the Right to Work.
The launch event of our 7th Human Rights Report gathered participants from all over Europe, including policymakers, civil society organisations, organisations of persons with disabilities, and disability advocates.
Jane Buchanan, leading researcher for the report, and Haydn Hammersley, EDF Social Policy Coordinator started the event by presenting the report’s main findings:
- Persons with disabilities are significantly less likely to be employed than persons without disabilities: only 51.3% of persons with disabilities in the European Union who are active and of working age are employed, compared to the 76% employment rate among their counterparts without disabilities. The average employment gap in the European Union is 27%;
- Intersectionality matters: women and youth with disabilities experience greater barriers in employment, especially when it comes to full-time work. A mere 20% of women with disabilities work full-time, compared to 29% of men with disabilities. Additionally, persons with high support needs are 40% less likely to be employed than persons without high support needs;
- Even when they work, persons with disabilities don’t experience the same quality of work: working persons with disabilities earn much less than their counterparts without disabilities and are less likely to be employed full-time. This, combined with the fact that the cost of living of persons with disabilities is on average much higher, creates a problem of in-work poverty and difficulty making ends meet;
- Disability allowance is usually tied to employment income. In many countries, it’s tied to income and decreases when persons with disabilities receive an income from working – however, for persons with disabilities who work, the cost of living keeps growing. In a recently released study, the European Commission has also looked into the state of social protection for persons with disabilities in Europe;
- When provided with reasonable accommodation, persons with disabilities perform well. Studies also prove that a significant number of workplace accommodation can be implemented without costs, because reasonable accommodation can also mean flexible working hours, being able to work from home and being allowed personal assistance. Additionally, Most EU Member States provide financial support for reasonable accommodation.
You can find all this information and more details in our report.
The presentation was followed by a keynote by Katarina Ivankovic-Knezevic, Director of DG Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion at the European Commission. Ms Ivankovic-Knezevic presented the tools that the European Union is developing to foster employment of persons with disabilities in Europe, including through the implementation of the European Strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities 2021-2030:
- Disability employment package, with the objective to improve labour market outcomes of persons with disabilities. The package will consist of a number of guidelines and good practices for employers, employees and authorities;
- Guidance on independent living and the framework for social services of excellence of persons with disabilities (planned for 2024), that go hand in hand as true inclusion of persons with disabilities in the community can only work if local services function well;
- AccessibleEU resource centre, with the objective to bring together national accessibility experts to increase coherence in disability policy and develop tools to implement the EU law in this area;
- EU Disability Card, designed to promote the free movement of persons with disabilities across Europe;
- Disability employment gap social rights scoreboard, a monitoring tool that is used to inform specific recommendations and highlight areas of improvement when compiling Member States’ reports.
Kamil Goungor of the European Network on Independent Living, Pirkko Mahlamaki of the Finnish Disability Forum and Tamara Byrne of EDF Youth Committee shared their personal experiences and views on the barriers to employment. Panellists highlighted the necessity to build inclusive employment opportunities and work environments for everyone, to treat persons with disabilities as an integral part of the workforce with equal salary. They also agreed on the importance of investing in young persons with disabilities by enhancing their skills, providing them with professional development opportunities during their education years and facilitating their mobility across Europe.
The event was concluded with a video message from Member of the European Parliament, Dragos Pislaru and remarks from Nadia Hadad, EDF Executive Member and Chair of the EDF Social Policy and Inclusion Committee.
Nadia Hadad stressed that “employment is a pillar of independent living” and that reasonable accommodation should not be limited to assistive technologies or physical accessibility; it should also be adapted to the needs of the individual. She called for collecting more disaggregated data on the employment of persons with disabilities. The data should consider factors like their education level, management level and background, as well as make a difference between inclusive and segregated employment.