Legislative Enforcement Gaps of Employment Rights of Persons with Disabilities with Particular Emphasis on Reasonable Accommodation in Addis Ababa
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Date
2013-06
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Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Abstract
Persons with disabilities do not equally and fully participate in the life of their society. They are
denied of equal opportunities in the area of employment, education and other activities. Thus,
this research is aimed at studying the discrimination made against them in field of employment
in general and inappropriate work conditions and denial of reasonable accommodations in work
places in particular in Addis Ababa City Government-the Case of Arada Sub-City. This research
employed qualitative or inerpretivism method and the sampling procedure, which this research
followed, is purposive or judgmental.
This research used both secondary and primary data sources for gathering information. Various
literature and research studies have been reviewed so as to use them as secondary sources of
information. Focus group discussions, informant interviews and in-depth interviews were
employed in this research as primary source of information. Three visually impaired three
persons with hearing impairment and three persons with physical disabilities employees in
different government and non-governmental organizations were interviewed as in-depth
respondents. Two focus group discussions were held with male and female discussants
separately as their challenges vary based on their gender. And interviews were held with
concerned government institutions from the federal and city government as they are responsible
for the follow-up of implementation of employment rights of persons with disabilities and with
respective disabled persons’ organizations for their duties of advocacy and lobby they might
conduct.
It has been found through this research that discrimination against persons with disabilities
(workers with visual, hearing and physical impairment in this concern) had been identified. They
discriminated during vacancy announcement, application and competition for jobs. Some had
been discriminated on training and promotion. Necessary accommodations and adjustments
(provision of special tools and needs) were not fulfilled and addressed in their workplaces.
The cause for the discrimination and denial of reasonable accommodations is mainly lack of
awareness and attitudinal problems on the part of employers and the employees, nonapplicability
of the existing laws, lack of institutional set-up for the follow-up, monitoring and
evaluation of the implementation of the provided law and inefficiency in mainstreaming the
disability issues in every activity, low capacity of DPOs hinder them to make advocacies and
lobby and absence of researches and accurate data to make effective policies, program and
strategies are the major ones. This results in adverse psychological, social and economic effects
in the lives of persons with disabilities. Therefore, awareness-raising programs, policy and
legislative measures, advocacy and other initiatives by associations of persons with disabilities,
institutional set-up for the implementation of laws and appropriate research and data
documentation are needed to curb these problems.
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Keywords
Disabilities with Particular Emphasis