By Vivi-Anne Emmanuelsson
Swedish Association of the Visually Impaired
For a long time, the struggle for jobs and the right of everyone to be employed has been a question of great importance in Sweden, irrespective of political creeds. It has been of even greater importance for the Swedish Association of the Visually Impaired. Less than half of our members of working age are employed ; others have been granted early retirement. This is an enormous waste of manpower. This situation has existed for a considerable time, even during periods where times have been good and unemployment low.
It is generally believed that visually impaired people cannot carry out proper work ; employers have doubts about their capacities. Investigations show, however, that employers are very satisfied with the performance of blind people at work.
SRF defines visual impairment as follows : "A person is visually impaired when his/her sight is reduced to such an extent that it leads to difficulties in reading ordinary script or orientating with the help of sight".
SRF is exploring the question of a more developed support system which would assist the visually impaired employee during the first phase of a new job in order that the work can be carried out efficiently. Without extra support to enable this, there is a risk that the person involved will be removed from his/her job and find it difficult to enter the labour market again.
The present system by which subsidies, supplementary wages and work assistants are granted is inflexible and does not allow for individual combinations which would make it possible for more people to work. The visually impaired are all too often regarded as one unit.
Generally speaking, visually impaired people are faced with two major problems on the labour market. The first is how to obtain and keep a job, and the second is how to make the job function well. These are very important questions which need to be investigated as the risk of exclusion increases dramatically if the work situation is not satisfactory. The great challenges are those of remaining on the labour market or seeking a job, and also the first application for employment as a congenitally visually impaired person.
To make a job function well depends highly on :
1. the psychosocial work environment and the social relations in the workplace
2. working aids
3. work adaptations
4. work assistance
5. support from employers
The employment situation of members of the Swedish Association of the Visually Impaired
To give an insight into the situation of the visually impaired on the labour market in Sweden, the results of the following study will serve as an example.
During Spring 2000, SRF interviewed members about their terms of employment. 105 women and 93 men took part in the interview, making up a total sample of 198.
Half of the members interviewed are employed, with 21 % of them working part-time. 40 % of the remainder have taken early retirement ; 6 % are studying ; 3 % are in search of work.
The greatest disparity between genders is that more women than men work part-time.
A large number of people in the survey have an additional disability (23 %) which leads to difficulties. For these people the situation on the labour market is even more problematic. Only 18% of this group are employed and about a third are on long-term sick leave. 80% have been granted early retirement.
Age plays a crucial part in the employment situation, particularly for women. Women over 50 face greater difficulties. 65 % of women up to the age of 50 are employed but, after that age, the figure drops to 39 %.
Men are not faced with the same problems. In our survey, the number of employed men over the age of 50 is the same as for those under the age of 50.
In most cases, the congenitally visually impaired are employed or are studying. Half of those who have become visually impaired as adults take early retirement.
The survey shows that for those in the age bracket 50-55 (109 people), computers and the ensuing technical developments have become significant factors in their situation on the labour market. 46 % of the men and 65 % of the women in the survey are equipped with computers with advanced adaptations.
One of our surveys reveals that "traditional jobs for the blind" still exist. Telephonists and sound technicians make up a relatively large group (4 % each). It also shows that in the 1970's the number of visually impaired social workers increased to 7 % of the overall number of those visually impaired people with a job. However, the bigger group is that of office clerks (16 %). This is by far the major source of job opportunities on the labour market.
The support system
The Employment Security Act prescribes that an employer cannot fire a person on the grounds that he/she is ill or has a disability. Employers must investigate rehabilitation possibilities when employees have been ill for more than four weeks. The primary goal is that the person remains on his current job. Ways of achieving this goal include : personal rehabilitation, task reorganisation, provision of technical aids. The employer or the National Health Services are responsible for funding of these measures.
If, for example, you become visually impaired and there is no more to do on the medical side, you are referred to a low vision centre. This is the central rehabilitation institution in Sweden. There are currently 33 low vision centres in Sweden which operate in the form of clinics where visits are arranged by appointment. The centres do not provide housing or rehabilitation courses but concentrate mainly on helping people with residual vision to acquire optical aids and training in their use.
To work and be able to perform work tasks on fairly equal conditions demands a workplace that is adapted to the needs of the visually impaired person. Specific needs depend on the degree of impairment and the nature of the work to be carried out. Advanced workplace adaptations have become more and more common.
The main subsidies for the visually impaired are :
Supplementary wages
To compensate for initial inconvenience, employers can receive part of the salary costs for employing a visually impaired person. The County Employment Boards decide upon the amount to be granted.
Work assistance
Employers are also eligible for economic support for hiring a work assistant for an employee with a disability. The maximum amount is currently 50 000 SEK per year. The County Employment Boards are also responsible for this.
Employers, or the visually impaired employees themselves, can obtain a grant in order to adapt the workplace. This covers the technical aids that are needed for managing the work. The County Employment Boards are responsible for adaptations and aids during the first year of employment. After that, responsibility is transferred to the Social Insurance Office.
In general, labour market training serves to strengthen opportunities for the unemployed to gain work. Employment offices purchase vocational training schemes from educational establishments, universities and municipalities.
In the last few years, vocational training has been predominently geared at technology, computers, production activities, service and care provision. But, a rapidly changing labour market has led to different demands for training.
The period of training and type of education varies, depending on the applicant’s background. The average length of training is six months.
To qualify for labour market training, one must : be unemployed or run the risk of losing one’s job ; be registered with the Employment Office.
Massage and computer training programmes are examples of areas covered by special labour market training for the visually impaired.
In Sweden, a company called Samhall offers special employment for people who have one or more occupational disability. It runs workshops all over the country, and its purpose is to generate meaningful and stimulating employment. Jobs available mainly relate to the production of goods and the provision of services. As a general policy, Samhall encourages its employees to leave after a while, and work for other employers or start their own businesses.
In Sweden, the Activity Guarantee system is made available to those who have been registered with the Employment Office for at least 24 months. It is based on a pool of existing labour market policy programmes, and provides transitional jobs of various kinds which form staging posts on the road to regular employment. Participants are admitted for up to six months at a time. Measures under the Activity Guarantee system are supervised and evaluated by the National Labour Market Board. The objective, among others, is to bring about, in partnership with employers, subsidised transitional jobs for those who, despite substantial efforts on their behalf, are still unable to find a job. This system provides visually impaired people with an opportunity to enter the labour market
Discrimination legislation
The UN Standard Rules on the Equalisation of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities were adopted in December 1993.
Six months later, the Office of the Disability Ombudsman was established in Sweden. The Ombudsman monitors the implementation of the UN Standard Rules and safeguards the rights and interests of persons with disabilities in that respect.
In order to achieve this, the Ombudsman carries out investigations on a national level and offers legal advice to individuals on disability issues. The Ombudsman also maintains regular contact with organisations of persons with disabilities.
The findings of the Ombudsman have paved the way for a new piece of legislation prohibiting discrimination against job applicants and employees with disabilities. This new law came into force in May 1999. In particular, it outlaws discrimination against people with disabilities in working life and protects employees and job-seekers against discrimination on the part of employers. The Ombudsman shall ensure that this law is voluntarily observed by employers. He has the right to represent individuals in court if their trade union organisations choose not to do so.
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