Give disabled employment: ILO

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Tue, 05/15/2007 7:49 AM

The International Labor Organization (ILO) has encouraged the government to ensure more access to employment for people with disabilities, its director Alan Boulton said Monday.

In a speech aimed at disclosing ILO's latest global research on work equality, Boulton said poor perceptions of the disabled and workplace inequalities continued to prevail in many countries.

Boulton said the commitment and dedication of disabled workers were oftentimes rated much higher than that of most able-bodied workers.

Therefore, he said, wider access to employment supported by the provision of more jobs for these people was necessary.

Citing an example in the United Kingdom, Boulton said this would boost overall productivity.

""The UK government in 2006 succeeded in making a program that assisted 25,000 people with different abilities to get back into the job market,"" he said as quoted by Detik.com news portal.

The ""Pathways To Work"" program, he went on, had cost 360 million (US$713 million) and focused on the provision of jobs and access to private advisors.

""The result was that the participation of the work force grew by 29 percent,"" Boulton said.

For Indonesia, he recommended the government improve legislation and work on altering employers' perception regarding those with varying workplace capabilities.

Indonesia has ratified the UN convention on non-discriminatory treatment, which pertains, among other things, to individuals with disabilities.

The ILO's comments come at a time when the government is still struggling to cut the unemployment rate, which has gone nowhere but up since 2005's controversial double oil price hike.

Employers have often blamed workers for being excessive in their demands for salary increases and benefits, while workers say employers have done nothing but exploit them without corresponding rewards. -- JP

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