Affiliations: Curso de Terapia Ocupacional, Departamento de
Fisioterapia, Fonoaudiologia e Terapia Ocupacional da Faculdade de Medicina da
Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brasil | Curso de Terapia Ocupacional do Departamento de
Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de São Paulo,
UNIFESP, Campus Baixada Santista, São Paulo, Brasil
Note: [] Corresponding author: Rosé Colom Toldrá, Rua
Cipotânea, 51, Butantã, São Paulo-SP Brasil, CEP: 3091
7431, Brasil. Tel.: +15 11 3091 8457; E-mail: rosetoldra@usp.br
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Participation in the workforce is one of the main social
evaluations all individuals are subject to in modern society. Public policies
supporting social justice for persons with disabilities have gained prominence
in several nations in the last decades and it is critical to ensure that those
who want to work are afforded the opportunity to do so. Meanwhile they remain
under represented in the labor market within the contemporary world. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to identify facilitators or
barriers faced by people with disability within the workforce. PARTICIPANTS: Ten workers with disabilities from various companies
and performing diverse professional job functions participated in
semi-structured interviews. METHOD: The Discourse of the Collective Subject method was employed
as a means to organize and analyze qualitative data of a verbal nature. RESULTS: Reasonable work conditions, adjustments, and accommodations
facilitate performance and job retention. Social participation through
employment leads to social recognition and the feeling of citizenship. On the
other hand prejudice, unequal opportunities, workers' low educational
attainment, and lack of training opportunities lead to employment
exclusion. CONCLUSION: To include people with disabilities in the workforce, it
is necessary to focus on attaining equal levels of education, an unbiased and
inclusive process for entering the labor market, and continued management of
disability issues within the workplace. Together, these elements create equal
opportunities for workers with disabilities to advance in their careers, which
in turn enables participation, social recognition and guaranties their rights
as citizens.
Keywords: Worker with disability, labor force, supported employment, social participation, occupation
