QUESTIONNAIRE AUSTRIA

EBU Questionnaire Survey on the situation of blind and partially sighted people
across the 27 EU Member States

September 2007

 

Name: Markus Wolf

Organisation: Austrian Federation of the Blind and Partially Sighted

Country: Austria

e-mail address: markus.wolf@utanet.at

Telephone number: +43-699-1238-6251


1/ Benefits


1.1. Does your country have any form of benefits system/ allowance for blind or partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer


1.2. If yes, is this allowance sufficient or does it need to be increased ?
Answer Sufficient End answer


2/ Transport / Mobility

 
2.1. Does your country provide blind and partially sighted people with any form of assistance for access to public transportation?
Answer Yes End answer

2.2. If yes, in what form?
 

2.2.1. Facilities allowing a better accessibility of public transport for blind and partially sighted people:
Answer Yes End answer

2.2.2. Financial aid:
Answer Yes End answer

2.2.3. If yes, is this assistance available :
At reduced cost.
Free of charge Answer Yes End answer  
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.
 


2.3. Are there any measures facilitating the mobility of blind of partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

 2.3.1 If yes, are they:

Financing of guide dogs. Answer Yes, partially  End answer
Tactile paving.  Answer Yes End answer
Provision of auditory means of communication. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of auditory signals at crosswalks.  Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.
 



2.4. Concerning accessibility / transport in general, what suggestions for improvement do you have?
 


3/ Employment


3.1. Are private companies under any obligation to recruit a certain number of disabled people?
Answer Yes End answer

3.2. Are some jobs reserved in priority for:

3.2.1. Disabled people?
Answer yes End answer

3.2.2. Blind or partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer


3.3. Are there any targeted wage subsidies or bonus for employers who recruit blind and partially sighted people?
Bonus. Answer yes End answer
Targeted wage subsidies. Answer yes End answer
Answer Other Other (explanation) There are tax breaks for companies that employ disabled people End answer
Don’t know.


3.4. Does your country have sheltered workshops or any other kind of structure employing only blind and partially sighted people?
Answer  Yes End answer

3.5. Are there any other incentives in your country to facilitate blind and partially sighted people’s employment?
Answer  Yes (explanation) The Bureau of Labour has a special unit that deals with the integration of disabled people. There is also a federal bureau – Bundessozialamt – dealing primarily with the integration of disabled people into the labour market. End answer


3.6. What is the situation with regard to the employment of blind and partially sighted women:
Under-employment. Answer  Yes End answer
Discrimination in recruitment.
Discrimination in wages.
Don’t know


3.7. Concerning employment in general, what kind of suggestion for improvement do you have?
Answer Companies should not be given a choice whether to employ disabled people and get a tax break or not employ them and not get a tax break. They should be compelled to employ them. Failure to do so should be sanctioned by severe penalties unless very good exceptional grounds exist. End answer
 



4/ Education


4.1. Does your country have specialized schools for blind of partially sighted children?
Answer  Yes End answer

4.2. Is it possible for blind of partially sighted children to attend mainstream schools?
Answer Yes End answer

4.2.1. If yes, are there any support services for blind and partially sighted children?

Provision of books in Braille. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of Braille writing devices. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of adapted electronic devices. Answer Yes End answer
Support by specially trained teachers. Answer Yes  End answer
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.



4.3. Can blind or partially sighted students at university benefit from some form of financial aid to purchase an adapted computer?
Answer Yes End answer


4.4. With regard to education in general, what kind of suggestions for improvement do you have?
Answer Computers and other adaptive technologies are general funded for students, but students do not have a legal right to this. It should be a legal right. End answer
 



5. REHABILITATION CENTRES FOR BLIND AND PARTIALLY SIGHTED PEOPLE


5.1. Does your country have any rehabilitation centre for blind or partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer 


5.2. Concerning rehabilitation centres, what suggestions for improvement do you have?
Increase the number of centres.  Answer Yes   End answer
Improve existing centres. Answer Yes   End answer
Increase the capacity of the centre.
Improve the training of staff (auxiliary nursing staff, special education teacher …)
Modernise the methods of rehabilitation to daily life.
Modernise professional training.
Other (please explain)
Don’t know.


5.3. Have you noted any progress in these areas?
Answer  Don’t know End answer


5.3.1. If no, did you notice a decline in the quality of the rehabilitation measures for blind and partially sighted people?
Yes / No / Don’t know

 

6/ VOCATIONAL TRAINING


6.1. Does your country have a specialized vocational training centre for employed or unemployed blind and partially sighted people?
Answer Yes End answer

6.2. Can blind or partially sighted employed or unemployed people attend mainstream vocational training centres?
Answer Yes End answer

6.3. If yes, are there any support services for the blind and partially sighted?
Provision of books in Braille. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of Braille writing devices. Answer Yes End answer
Provision of adapted electronic devices. Answer Yes End answer
Support by specially trained teachers. Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain).
Don’t know.

6.4. Have these measures been adopted since your country’s accession to the EU or did they exist before?
Answer New End answer

6.5. With regard to vocational training in general, what kind of suggestions for improvement do you have?
 


 

7. ACCESSIBILITY OF ICTs


7.1. Is it possible to obtain support for ICTs for blind people of all age categories:
At school
At university
At work.
At home.
What kind of support ? (Please explain)



7.2. Is it possible to obtain support for ICTs for partially sighted people of all age categories ?
At school.
At university.
At work.
At home.
What kind of support ? (Please explain)
 



8/ E-GOVERNMENT

8.1. How do you evaluate the accessibility of public websites (E-government; documents, forum, services, interactive pages, etc.)
Very good.
Good.
Medium.
Bad.
Very bad.
(Please explain):


8.2. Is your government doing anything to make E-government websites accessible to blind and partially sighted people?
 


9/ EU INFLUENCE


9. Do you think that the EU has had a positive influence on the situation of blind and partially sighted people in your country ?

(Please explain):

 


10/ Finally, do you have any expectation with regard to your country’s belonging to the EU?


10. Do you have expectations with regard to:
Employment.
Education.
Vocational training.
Rehabilitation centres.                                             
Transport / mobility.                                                   
Accessibility of buildings and traffic lanes. Answer Yes End answer
Access to information (accessibility of ICTs). Answer Yes End answer
Financial support.
Gender equality.Answer Yes End answer
Other (please explain)
 

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