Eurofound’s Post

Yesterday Eurofound presented updates on our latest findings from our research on disability rights. Listening to the presentations two key things stood out to me: 1️⃣ Obstacles preventing people with disabilities accessing employment Stereotypes: Often there is a lack of awareness about how to recruit people with disabilities and adapt the workplaces to match their needs. Admin Burdens: Bureacractic systems can prevent hiring people with disabilities, this is especially common for part-time workers where part-time work can prevent individuals accessing essential supports and protections. Inactivity Traps: The longer someone is out of employment that harder it is to get back to work, findings suggest many people with disabilities risk losing their social protections and supports that are essential to manage their disability Reasonable Accommodations: Although it is now a legal obligation, with guidelines from the Commission, reasonable accommodations are not always made and findings suggest there can be differences between how such accommodations are applied in practice. 2️⃣ Lessons learned from Eurofound's research: Lack of data - Despite progress there is a lack of data, and if we want evidence based policies, this requires more and better data. Evaluations - There needs to be more evaluations and monitoring assessing how interventions work (or don't work), to generate better evidence. Voices - People with disabilities should be at the centre of research, their needs should be captured and ensure their priorities are addressed, remembering this isn't just about a process of Deinstitutionalisation, this is about a sustainable change in a persons life and their identity. Life cycle approach - Policies are often done in ad-hoc way or siloed, and not well integrated, by taking a life cycle approach we can ensure policies properly reinforce one another. Relevance today - Interventions and policies should be assessed by their relevance to existing needs today and the supports that are required, and ideally looking to the future with our shifting societies. Shout out to Daphne Ahrendt and Sanna Nivakoski for a fantastic overview!