Disablement in Slovenia: employment issues

1. Disablement in Slovenia: employment issues Natalija Jesenicnik YHD- Association for theory and culture of disability London Oct.2007

2. Research in the field of employment: • a review of legislation dealing with employment of disabled people; • qualitative research from 2006: • questionnaires for all rehabilitation counselors at Employment service of Slovenia; • interviews with providers of vocational rehabilitation; • “Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities”, Darja Zavirsek and Spela Urh; national report for EU Monitoring and Advocacy Program of the Open Society Institute in cooperation with Open Society Mental Health Initiative.

3. Disability companies • First disability companies were established in Slovenia in 1988 • At least 40% of all the employees must be disabled • Currently: 166 disability companies, 13.580 employed in disability companies, 6.348 disabled persons • In 2005 the average gross income of disabled workers was 32,2 % lower than average gross income of nondisabled workers in disability companies(Ministry of work, family and social affairs) .

4. Number of disabled people in Slovenia (31.12.2005, Employment Service)

5. Number of unemployed disabled people (Employment Service)

6. Comparison between unemployment rate of disabled persons and general unemployment rate by the end of 2006 (Employment Service)

7. Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment of Disabled Persons Act(ZZRZI) • By this law, disabled person is an individual who has: • permanent consequences of a physical or mental injury or illness • difficulties with activities that have influence on person’s employment and • inclusion barriers into working environment as defined in International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health The status of disabled person by this law can get a person that doesn’t have status of disabled person by any other regulations and is registered as unemployed person at Employment service of Slovenia.

8. Quota system • Fund for Promoting the Employment of the Disabled from 2006directs the implementation of quota system • Employers with more than 20 employees are obliged to fulfill the quota by employing, a contract on business co-operation between employer and disability company or employment centre or by paying the amount of money • 2 % quota for: fishing industry, commerce, repairs of vehicles and consumer goods, catering, financial agencies, public administration, defense, mandatory health security and other public, joint and personal services; • 4 % quota for: construction industry, transport, storage and communications, real-estate business, lease, rent and other businesslike services and education; • 6 % quota for: agriculture, hunting, forestry, mining industry, processing activities, supply with electricity, gas and water, health care and social security.

9. ZZRZI also introduced: • Supported employment • Protected employment- Employment Centers • Vocational rehabilitation • Employment in disability companies • Incentives for employment

10. Supported and protected employment • Supported employment of disabled persons in regular work environment with professional and technical support of person, employer and work environment. • Protected employment for disabled people who were estimated not capable to work in regular work environment, and is carried out in so called “employment centres”. • According to Fund for promoting employment of disabled till October 2007 only one realised supported employment • By July 2007 14 Employment Centres were established with 160 employees.

11. Social inclusion programmes • Those people, who are in the process of evaluation of their work ability estimated as not employable, can enter social inclusion programmes which are carried out by 21 organizations who became concessionaires. • Act Concerning Social Care of Mentally and Physically Handicapped Persons assigns the status of disabled person to children with moderate, severe or profound intellectual or physicaldisability and with that status they can’t qualify for independent living and work- they are excluded from the labour market

12. Vocational rehabilitation • Employment Service of Slovenia with rehabilitation commissions • network of providers of vocational rehabilitation: one public institution and 12 concessionaires, who gain concession for four years

13. Services that are being carried out in the frame of vocational rehabilitation are: • a) counseling, promoting and motivating disabled persons for taking more active part • b) preparing opinion about work ability, knowledge, working habits and occupational interests • c) help at accepting own disability and informing about possibilities of inclusion in training and work • d) help at choosing suitable occupational goals • e) developing social skills • f) help at searching suitable work or employment • g) analysis of concrete working place and working environment of disabled person • h) making a plan of adjustments for working place and working environment of disabled person • i) making a plan of needed equipment and means of work • j) on the job training • k) coaching and professional help at training and in education • l) coaching of disabled person on work place after employment • m) evaluation of rehabilitation process • n) evaluation of achievement of work results of disabled persons

14. Scheme of the process of vocational rehabilitation(Employment Service of Slovenia) Disability status and the right to vocational rehabilitation application preliminary opinion ESS Rehabilitation counsellor rehabilitation commission rehabilitation plan R EHA BI L I T ATI O N opinion V O C A T I O N A L decision about the right to vocational rehabilitation decision about disability status Services of vocational rehabilitation Providers of vocational rehabilitation Final assessment of disabled person’s employment possibilities EMPLOYABLE NOT EMPLOYABLE Ordinary work environment Protected employment Programmes of social inclusion Disability companies Labour market Supported employment EMPLOYMENT CENTERS

15. Sheltered workshopsReport on Rights of People with Intellectual Disabilities • Sheltered workshops serve as a social welfare service for adults with disabilities, providing “guidance, care and employment under special conditions”. The term “employment under special conditions” refers to work (including producing goods) and also to the development of skills and work habits. • In 2004 there were 29 public sheltered workshops in Slovenia, comprising 15 independent workplaces: five in centres for social work, five in special schools and five in training institutions. • In 2001 over 2000 people with intellectual disabilities (mostly of a moderate degree) were working in sheltered workplaces • Most of the workers in sheltered workshops are men between 26 and 36 years old • On average the award is between 17 € and 83€ per month • Example of good practice

16. Recommendations • We can say that the new law doesn’t stimulate people to test their abilities in practice or to try to find work using services introduced by new law no matter what their formal status is or their so called type of disability. Access to services and programmes dealing with job insertion should be based on concrete, individual needs of a person and not on a formal status she or he has. • There should be changes made about the rigidity of our legal system regarding easier access from social security system to paid employment and vice versa. People should have a chance to test themselves in paid employment without a fear of loosing all social benefits after it. • Greater emphasis should me made and more support in practice should be given to employment of people with disabilities in regular work environment.

17. There should be better system of collecting data on the field of employment of disabled. The lack of official data is an important barrier to assessing the situation of people with disabilities in Slovenia, especially the situation of people with intellectual disabilities. Services of vocational rehabilitation and all the programmes dealing with insertion of disabled people on the labour market should be evaluated and providers of vocational rehabilitation should follow up what is happening with a person after he or she finished the programme and give them support and help at searching a job. There should be incentives to encourage programmes and projects that bring good results and can be called good or promising practices on the field of job insertion of people with disabilities.