Supported employment and the National Disability Strategy

1
Supported employment and the National Disability
Strategy

• Eithne Fitzgerald
• Head of Policy and Public Affairs
• National Disability Authority

2
Outline

• Facts and figures
• National Disability Strategy
• Promoting partnership

3
Low participation in work

• A third of people with disabilities have a job v.
  three quarters of others (Census 2006)
• 60 of people with disabilities not working are
  restricted in type or amount of work they can do
• Raising employment rates will mean more emphasis
  on supporting people to get and to keep work

4
Employment and disabilityCensus 2006
5
Highest level of education achieved Age 24 who
have completed education (Census 2006)
6
Employment rates, disabled and other men by
education level (age 25-34 Census 2002)
7
Difficulty in types or amount of workpeople with
long-term illness or disability QNHS 2002
8
National Disability Strategy Employment and
disability commitments

• Develop a comprehensive employment strategy for
  people with disabilities
• Numerical targets for increased employment
• Develop and enhance FÁS supported employment
  programme
• Cross-departmental co-operation across
  Enterprise, Trade and Employment Health Social
  and Family Affairs
• Specific commitments to enhance supported
  employment to bridge between HSE and mainstream
  training systematic process of engagement with
  people with disabilities to establish employment
  aspirations
• 3 target mandatory under Part 5 Disability Act

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National Disability Strategy Targets Employment
and disability

• Sectoral Plan
• 7,000 more in work by 2010
• National Development Plan - 2016
• participation in education, training and
  employment up 50
• proportion at work up from 37 to 45 (QNHS)

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Comprehensive employment strategyNDA report -
Key pillars

• Make work pay, remove benefit traps
• Equip pwd to compete in labour market now and
  future
• Enlist public and private sector employers
• Prevent flow into inactivity
• School leavers
• People acquiring a disability
• Systematic process of engagement
• Comprehensive across individuals and levels of
  ability

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Supported employment Almost 4 of workers with a
disability

• Two separate state-funded arrangements
• FÁS scheme
• In principle 18 hours a week
• c. 900 in work 1,100 in job assessment/job
  search phases
• HSE-funded supported employment
• Less than 18 hours a week
• c.1,000 receiving HSE or service provider job
  coach support

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Joined-up thinking

• HSE review of Adult Day Services
• Decline in sheltered workshop nos. opportunity
  for alternative forms of employment support
• Review of ETE Supported Employment programme
• Earnings disregard of 50 over 120 a week
• Social Welfare developments
• Commitment in Government programme on medical
  card continuation
• Importance of dovetailing changes in HSE, ETE and
  social welfare
• Less rigid conditions for FÁS support may allow
  more opportunities under FÁS rather than HSE
  umbrella

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Part 5 Disability Act

• Legal obligations on public bodies to
• Promote and support employment of people with
  disabilities
• Achieve 3 target of employees with a disability
• People with ID under-represented in the public
  service relative to other employments
• Good models of partnership with local disability
  services and supported employment consortia could
  be built on
• Small bodies that find it hardest to reach 3
  could use supported employment work experience
  placements

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Conclusion

• Lots happening in employment/disability policy
• Opportunity for partnerships and joined-up
  thinking
• Supported employment partnerships with both
  public and private sectors