The DisabilityRights Team continues to challenge and encourage ALL employers in both the private and public sector to affirm women with disabilities. Article 6 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) requires of countries that have ratified the Convention, to recognize that women and girls with disabilities are subject to multiple discrimination, and in this regard to take measures to ensure the full and equal enjoyment by them of all human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to take all appropriate measures to ensure the full development, advancement and empowerment of women, for the purpose of guaranteeing them the exercise and enjoyment of the human rights and fundamental freedoms set out in the present Convention. Economic empowerment of women with disabilities is a cornerstone for the advancement and empowerment of women with disabilities. The Baseline Country Report on the implementation of the CRPD notes, among others, that · It is a fact that women and girls with disabilities still do not enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis with boys and men with disabilities. Black women with disabilities in particular bear the brunt of inequality based on race, disability, gender, socio-economic status and class. · An example of good practice in economic empowerment is the Norad-funded Women’s Entrepreneurship Development and Gender Equality (WEDGE-SA) project, co-ordinated by the ILO. The project has mainstreamed disability from the inception stage to ensure that the project benefits women entrepreneurs with disabilities. It encourages social dialogue and awareness-raising of the issues that face entrepreneurs with disabilities, and aims to reduce the stigma attached to disability through inclusion and demonstration of the abilities of entrepreneurs with disabilities. Efforts to include people with disabilities in all the project outcomes have included training two persons the disability sector in the Women’s Entrepreneurship Development Programme and one person the Women’s Entrepreneurship Development Programme which is part of Capacity and Building Tools, training 18 front- line staff and advisors of the Women’s Small Enterprise Development Agency on mainstreaming disability considerations, and training two women from the disability sector in the Expand your Business Tool programme. As a result of the above, 5,72% of disabled growth-oriented women entrepreneurs were trained : · 3,7% of trainees in ‘Expand your Business’ were disabled; · 6,01% of trainees in ‘Action my Business’ were disabled; · 0,97% of trainees in ‘Improve your Exhibition Skills’ were disabled; · 9,82% of business association members trained were disabled; · 10,56% of business development service providers trained were disabled; and · 5,18% of trainers trained in WEDGE tools were disabled. Challenges in the inclusion of women with disabilities identified in the project reflect those cited in similar government programmes, i.e. a limited number of women entrepreneurs who meet the criteria for support and the limited capacity of disabled peoples organisations to engage consistently with the project management teams. The 2012/13 Commission for Employment Equity Annual Report notes that only 20,9% of the total disabled workforce of designated employers in both the public and private sector is constituted by women with disabilities – · Black women with disabilities constitute only 8,8% of the total disabled workforce · Women with disabilities constitute 29% of the disabled workforce at senior/top management level: o The Electricity, Gas & Water sector (42,2%) and the Finance & Business Services Sector (40,9%) perform best, and the Mining and Quarrying Sector worst (10,7%) o Women with disabilities at top management level constitute 20,9% compared to 79,1% men with disabilities. Best performers are national government departments with 60%, and Not-for-Profit Organisations with 42,2%. Worst performers are educational institutions with only 8%, parastatals with 12,5%, and the private sector with 19,8%. o Women with disabilities at the senior management level constitute 29%, compared to 71% men with disabilities. Best performers are national government departments with 50,6%, and Not-for-Profit Organisations with 42,4%. Worst performers include educational institutions with only 6,1%, and the private sector with 31,1%. · Women with disabilities constitute 35,8% of the disabled workforce at the professionally qualified level: o The Catering, Accommodation and other trades sector (46,1%), the Finance and Business Service Sector (43,7%) and the Wholesale Trade, Commercial Agents and Allied Services Sector (42,4%) perform best, and the Mining and Quarrying Sector worst (9,8%) o Women with disabilities at the professionally qualified level constitute 34,9% compared to 63,1% men with disabilities. Best performers are Not-for-Profit Organisations with 62,9% and Provincial Government Departments with 42,4%. Worst performers are the private sector with 33,1% and municipalities with 35,4%. · Women with disabilities constitute 39% of the disabled workforce at the skilled level: o The Finance and Business Sector (54,1%) and the Catering, Accommodation and other trades Sector (53,3%) perform best, and once again the Mining and Quarrying Sector worst (9,6%) o Women with disabilities at the skilled level constitute 38% compared to 62% men with disabilities. Best performers are the Not-for-Profit sector with 56,1% and government as a whole with 46,6%. Worst performers are the private sector with 34,5% and parastatals with 34%. The DisabilityRights Team appreciates all efforts taken to improve discrimination in the workplace, and in particular against women with disabilities. The DWCPD was therefore proud to be part of the recently held Gender Mainstreaming Awards, and the acknowledgement of the need to accelerate eradication of discrimination on the basis of disability and gender. The Gender and Disability Category was awarded to PPC Cement (see attached) We are challenging ALL employers in the public as well as private sector, designated or not, to put measures in place that will accelerate access to decent work for women with disabilities. These measures should include, among others: · Reviewing your Employment Equity Plans to ensure that you address Disability/Gender Equity both in terms of aggressive targets but also in terms of reasonable accommodation measures; · Reviewing your recruitment policies and procedures to allow for targeted recruitment/head-hunting; · Reviewing your bursary schemes to ensure that (i) you set progressive targets for disabled bursary holders and (ii) your policies allow for sponsorship of reasonable accommodation measures; · Entering into agreements with employment agencies and disability organisations which specialise in the placement and recruitment of persons with disabilities; · Conducting accessibility audits of all your workplaces to identify barriers that hinder full participation of persons with disabilities in the workplace, developing universal access and design plans, costing these and then of course, budgeting for these! · Contracting organisations of persons with disabilities and enterprises belonging to disabled entrepreneurs to conduct disability rights awareness with your work force; · Affirming persons with disabilities in your general procurement policies and practices; and · Reviewing your CSI policies to ensure that you mainstream disability across your criteria for ANY project funding.
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 16:03:53 +0000
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