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Policy Guidelines for Inclusive Sustainable Development Goals DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH ADVANCE VERSION © 2020 United Nations The Policy Guidelines for Inclusive Sustainable Development Goals are a component of the SDG- CRPD Resource Package, developed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). This is an advance version of the SDG-CRPD Resource Package. A final version will be issued upon completion of OHCHR review processes. The designations employed and the presentation of the material herein do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Symbols of United Nations documents are composed of capital letters combined with figures. Mention of such a figure indicates a reference to a United Nations document. Photography by Christian Tasso. The photographs featured within the Policy Guidelines were taken as part of the European Union project, Bridging the Gap II – Inclusive Policies and Services for Equal Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and were produced with the financial support of the European Union. They appear courtesy of the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administration and Public Policies. The Policy Guidelines for Inclusive Sustainable Development Goals were produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of OHCHR and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. IN BRIEF 6 1. What is the situation? 7 2. What needs to be done? 11 3. DO’s and DON’Ts 16 IN DEPTH 16 1. Introduction 20 2. Connection to other tools 20 3. Why is Goal 8 important for persons with disabilities? 20 4. Decent work for persons with disabilities: actions applicable across all Goal 8 targets 23 4.1 Governance 23 4.2 Legislation 23 4.3 Close consultation with, and involvement of, persons with disabilities 23 4.4 Awareness-raising 24 4.5 Training on inclusive workplaces 25 Contents Contents 4.6 Budget allocation 26 4.7 Data collection and disaggregation 26 4.8 Data protection and privacy 27 4.9 Accountability and complaint mechanisms 27 + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 4 5. Other key actions by target 28 5.1 Full and productive employment of persons with disabilities – Target 8.5 28 5.1.1 Include the rights of persons with disabilities in labour law, including the prohibition of discrimination, the provision of reasonable accommodation and the right to return to work 28 5.1.2 Adopt an action plan/strategy for the promotion of employment of persons with disabilities in both the private and public sector 29 5.1.3 Carry out awareness-raising campaigns on the labour rights of persons with disabilities 32 5.1.4 Measure and reduce the disability pay gap 33 5.2 Self-Employment of persons with disabilities – Targets 8.3 and 8.10 34 5.2.1 Ensure that mainstream vocational and entrepreneurship training are inclusive of persons with disabilities and that supportive targeted training is available to them 34 5.2.2 Adopt legal and regulatory measures to ensure the equal participation of persons with disabilities in business organizations and equal access to financial services, including micro-finance and credit schemes 35 5.2.3 Make business development services available for persons with disabilities 36 5.3 Protection of labour rights of persons with disabilities – Targets 8.8 and 8.7 37 Contents 5.3.1 Ensure freedom of association to persons with disabilities to create and participate in trade unions 37 5.3.2 Ensure that occupational health assessments do not prevent access to employment, based on impairments 38 5.3.3 Incorporate accessibility, in all its dimensions, as a key element of occupational health and safety 40 5.3.4 Adopt disability inclusive strategies against forced labour, including measures to end forced begging and other forms of exploitation 41 6. Additional Resources 42 7. Key Concepts Annex 43 + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 5 IN BRIEF + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 6 1. What is the situation? Persons with disabilities have lower rates of employment than other persons. Available data from the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs,Disability and Development Report, 2019) show that, on average, 36 per cent of persons with disabilities are employed compared with 60 per cent of other persons, as shown in figure I. figure i Employment to population ratios for persons aged 15 years and over, by disability status, in 8 regions, in 2006-2016 80% 69% 66% 67% 61% 58% 60% 60% 53% 51% 51% 47% 44% 36% 36% 40% 34% 31% 30% 28% 25% 20% 0% Europe Oceania North America ALL REGIONS Sub-Saharan Africa Central and Southern Asia Latin America and Caribbean Eastern and South-Eastern Asia Northern Africa and Western Asia All other persons Persons with disabilities Source: ESCAP, ESCWA, Eurostat, ILO, UNDESA (on the basis of data from IPUMS and SINTEF), as cited in UNDESA, Disability and Development Report, 2019, p. 153. Data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), also highlight that 49 per cent of persons with disabilities are economically inactive, compared with 20 per cent of other persons, as shown in figure II. Women with disabilities are more excluded from employment than men. + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 7 figure ii Percentage of economically inactive persons with disabilities vs other persons in the OECD (the late 2000s) 75% All other 5% persons 20% 44% Persons with 7% disabilities 49% Employed Other, not employed or inactive Economically inactive Source: OECD, Sickness, Disability and Work: Breaking the Barriers: A Synthesis of Findings across OECD Countries, 2010. There is limited data on the “disability pay gap”, but data on three countries indicate of a gap between persons with disabilities and other persons. In one case, for Chile, this gap was of 16 per cent, as shown in figure III. figure iii Wage Gap for Persons with Disabilities Compared to Others (3 countries) Spain -12% United States of America -13% Chile -16% Source: National Statistical Institute of Spain, Erickson et al (2014) and Ministry of Social Development of Chile, as cited in UNDESA, Disability and Development Report, 2019, p. 159. + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 8 Given their exclusion from employment, self-employment remains key for persons with disabilities to earn an income. Data on 19 countries indicate that persons with disabilities are 9 per cent more represented than persons without disabilities among the self-employed, on average, with higher rates for a number of low-income countries (UNDESA, Disability and Development Report, 2019). Persons with disabilities tend to be excluded from education and vocational training, leading to having fewer skills to perform specific tasks or develop businesses. For more information, seePolicy Guideline on SDG 4, section 5.4 on SDG Target 4.4. Many barriers prevent persons with disabilities from accessing financial services required for developing business, including microfinance programmes. Restrictions to legal capacity may also prevent some persons with disabilities from opening bank accounts or accessing credit (e.g. it may be required for persons with intellectual disabilities or others under guardianship to have their guardian sign contracts or authorise their transactions, in contradiction with the recognition of legal capacity). Legal provisions, including on legal capacity, may also restrict freedom of association and prevent persons with disabilities from creating or from participating in trade unions. These would allow persons with disabilities to defend, advocate for and mainstream their rights and interests. Persons with disabilities who are unemployed or out of work may need to rely on social protection schemes, where available, or depend entirely on relatives to provide for basic requirements. These sources of protection may not be adequate to provide for disability-related extra costs (see Policy Guideline on SDG 1) and may push persons with disabilities towards begging, or situations of forced labour and exploitation, such as modern slavery and human trafficking. Data on how these practices affect persons with disabilities are scarce. Persons with disabilities that seek or gain employment experience many barriers throughout the employment cycle. Common examples range from disability discrimination in recruitment to forced early retirement. Table 1 highlights those barriers and provides links to relevant sections of this document that address them. table 1 Common barriers relating to the employment cycle and guideline sections that address them Common barriers Actions in this guideline 1. Throughout the employment cycle Lack of reasonable accommodation 5.1.1 Prohibit discrimination and ensure the provision of reasonable accommodation + SDG 8: DECENT WORK AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 9 2. Recruitment Lack of accessibility of recruitment processes (e.g. communications, application forms, interviews) Negative stereotypes and prejudice leading to 4.4 Awareness raising direct discrimination (e.g.during an interview) 4.5 Ensure training on inclusive workplaces 5.1.1 Include disability rights in labour law Pre-employment occupational health assessments 5.3.2 Occupational health assessments should excluding persons based on their impairment not prevent access to employment based on impairment 3. Labour rights in employment Inaccessibility of workplaces limits inclusion and 5.3.3 Incorporate accessibility as a key element increases risks to personal safety and limits of occupational health and safety inclusion Restrictions to create and/or participate in trade 5.3.1 Ensure freedom of association of persons unions (e.g. due to deprivation of legal capacity with disabilities based on impairment) 4.
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