In the context of a progressive return to normality, in October 2022, thirty months after Portugal declared an alert situation due to Covid-19, the Government took the decision not to renew it. However, the country in 2022 is different from the one that existed pre-Covid, so our colleagues from Consultis have considered that it is time to analyse, in more detail, the negative impact of the pandemic on the economy and society, particularly regarding the situation of people with disabilities.
Taking as a reference the 170 measures proposed by the National Strategy for the Inclusion of People with Disabilities to be implemented in the period 2021-2025, they have emphasized that almost all the goals proposed for 2021 were missed, among which was the realisation of a diagnosis on employability. In their opinion, this situation is certainly related to the fact that there is no specific budget allocation for the implementation of the Strategy. This situation is all the more serious because the number of people with disabilities registered in the public employment services has increased by 30% over the last decade, according to the Disability and Human Rights Observatory. Between 2011 and 2021, 3,175 more people with disabilities were registered in the Employment and Vocational Training Institute (13,583 in 2021), with relevant increases during the periods of the pandemic.
Complementary, according to the study “People with Disabilities in Portugal – Human Rights Indicators 2022”, carried out by the Disability and Human Rights Observatory (Higher Institute of Social and Political Sciences of the University of Lisbon) and released on the 13thof December 2022, despite some progress that has been achieved in the human rights of people with disabilities in Portugal, the additional difficulties faced by these people are slow to decrease, putting them more exposed to the risk of poverty or social exclusion.
Social protection and living conditions
According to the results of the Survey on Living Conditions and Income, in 2021 there was an increase in the rate of poverty or social exclusion by 2% compared to the previous year. In conformity with mentioned source, 30.5% of disabled people (aged 16-64) were exposed to the risk of poverty or social exclusion.
Education
The report highlights that in the academic year 2020/2021, learning and inclusion support measures were mobilised for 78,268 pupils, representing 6.7% of all those attending compulsory public education in Portugal. Also, there were 2,779 students with disabilities enrolled in higher education, an increase of 7.6% compared to the previous academic year (+197 students).According to the mentioned source, 1,223 grants were awarded to students with disabilities, which represents 1.5% of the total number of grants awarded to higher education students (+13.7% compared to the previous academic year).
Work and employment
The report shows improvements in registered unemployment of people with disabilities. In September 2022, there were around 13,000 unemployed people with disabilities registered in the public employment services, a decrease of 4.6% compared to December 2021. However, in the general population, in the same period, the decrease of people registered as unemployed was much more accelerated, reaching 17%. These numbers demonstrate the increased difficulties of people with disabilities in accessing employment, which happens in a slower way.
Professional integration of people with disabilities, by sectors
According to available data, in 2021, there were more disabled workers in the public sector than in the private sector, totalling almost 20,040, 6% more than in 2020. In the last 5 years, the prevalence of employees with disabilities in the public sector has increased insignificantly, from 2.4% in 2017 to 2.8% in 2021.
As for the private sector, in 2020 (the year when the pandemic started), only 0.59% of the employees of companies with more than 10 workers were people with disabilities. In the same year, 200 people with disabilities were hired in these companies (+1.5% compared to 2019).In this context, our colleagues highlight two aspects. On the one hand, this percentage decreased year by year, from +9.1% in 2018 compared to 2017, to +7.7% in 2019 compared to the previous year and up to +1.5% in 2020 compared to 2019.On the other hand, the prevalence of employees with disabilities in the private sector remains very low; in the last 5 years it has increased by only 0.08 percentage points, from 0.51% to 0.59%.These data contrast with the objective of extending the Quota System for people with disabilities to the private sector, whose transition period for companies with more than 100 workers ends in February 2023.
In this context, it is clear that there is a growing attention of companies towards inclusive employment. However, most companies will not yet be able to comply with the law, either because they do not know how to identify suitable candidates to meet the quotas or even because of ignorance of the law. The law aims at integrating people who, having disability, can still perform the activity they are applying for without functional limitations or, having functional limitations, these can be overcome through the adequacy or adaptation of the workstation and/or support products. Hence the importance of the LEAD project and similar initiatives, working directly with people with disabilities and employers.
Progress of LEAD project in Portugal
As society gradually returned to normality, the LEAD project’s activities have naturallyincreased. Therefore, the LEAD team in Portugal is satisfied with the results achieved. Our colleagues report that on the 30th of September, 2022, 158 young Portuguese adults with disabilities looking for a job were registered as beneficiaries on the LEAD project and got involved in the employment programme. Of these, 61 were involved in the Supported Employment programme and 17 were already employed.
Also, our colleagues from Portugal have continued to organise experience exchanges between young adults with disabilities looking for a job and potential employers. Consequently, between April and September 2022, eight such meetings took place. These events facilitated interactions, and built natural relationships between employers and potential employees, increasing employment opportunities for young adults with disabilities. Eight employers and 20 young adults attended these meetings.
The Consultis team considers that the activity of spreading information about the Supported Employment methodology, its advantages, and its implications is particularly relevant within the scope of the LEAD project. It is envisaged to promote this methodology in Portugal, through various activities, with the aim of ensuring its implementation by other entities.
In this context, both Portuguese Centres – The Integrated Centre of Resources in Supported Employment, and The Centre of Supported Employment Services – deliver consultancy and provide information to employers and human resources specialists to raise awareness on general issues concerning disability at the workplace, and inclusive employment. This is a particularly successful activity. Up to the 30th of September 2022, 137 organisations / companies from different regions of Portugal (from the Porto metropolitan area to the Centre and South Regions) benefited from consultancy services, provided by Consultis specialists in this way. In parallel, 21 employers and human resources specialists had the opportunity to attend three training sessions organised by the Consultis team, in order to prepare them to include young adults with disabilities in their teams, as employees.The last training session of 2022, attended by 10 human resources and employment specialists, was held online in November, with the support of Rumo – Cooperativa de Solidariedade Social, CRL, from Barreiro.
At the same time, the process of expanding the National Network of Supported Employment Services Providers has continued. This Network was created in February 2019 in order to facilitate the implementation of Supported Employment methodology throughout the country and to ensure the exchange of information between professionals in the field. According to our colleagues from Consultis, so far 37 organisations from different regions of Portugal have joined the National Network.The last organisation to join in was CRESAÇOR – Cooperativa Regional de Economia Solidária, CRL, from Azores.
The Portuguese LEAD team has been informing the representatives of public authorities and the members of the civil society about the role of the National Network of Supported Employment Services Providers: raising the level of community awareness on Supported Employment services and demonstrating that young adults with disabilities are able and are willing to work.
Until the 30th of September 2022, 169 representatives of public authorities and 4,190 members of the civil society (young adults with disabilities, members of their families, employers, representatives of non-governmental organisations, VET and CVET centres representatives) were informed about the opportunities offered by the LEAD project, and the activity of the National Network of Supported Employment Services Providers. Our colleagues have also worked with the municipalities from the Viseu and Guarda districts, in order to raise awareness and articulate the issues of disability.
The project “Labour market Employment for young Adults with a Disability – LEAD” is funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA and Norway Grants Fund for Youth Employment.
António Silva Dias
