Uppeldi og menntun - 01.07.2015, Qupperneq 106

Uppeldi og menntun - 01.07.2015, Qupperneq 106
UPPELDI OG MENNTUN/ICELANDIC JOURNAL OF EDUCATION 24(2) 2015106 SOCIAL ( IN )EQUALITY: COLLABORATIVE REFLECTION ‘functionings’. The education level of people with intellectual disabilities is low, and while their right to compulsory through upper secondary level education has been stated in the legislation, their training and education has not found a niche within the labor market. The education level is, therefore, not simply about the person’s impair- ment or inabilities to follow the national curriculum; it is rather about limited capabil- ities to function, because of complex and closely linked aspects which limit what the person is able to achieve. Employment In 2014, six years after the collapse of the banking system, 11.1% of the nation was below the low income cut off point or at risk of poverty or social exclusion which is, however, better than what can be expected in the European Union (Statistics Iceland, 2015). For decades, the Icelandic state has emphasized economic and social security and, similarly to other Nordic welfare states, it is characterized by high employment rates and equal distribution of wealth (Jónsson, 2001). Nonetheless, according to recent research in Iceland, approximately 56% of disability pensioners report financial difficulties to the point of limiting their well-being, especially those with children (Arnalds, Tryggvadóttir, & Snæfríðar- og Gunnarsdóttir, 2014). Furthermore, research in Iceland suggests that people with intellectual disabilities lack access to economic and material resources as well as paid work (Björnsdóttir & Traustadóttir, 2010). Barnes and Mercer (2005) argue that employment is commonly viewed as central to social inclusion and point to the marginalization of disabled people from the labor market as a major factor in their social exclusion. In a recent survey in Iceland, about 49% of disabled respondents reported being unemployed, not enrolled in school or in daycare, and not actively seeking employment (Arnalds et al., 2014). However, these numbers do not take into account those who are unable to work or be active due to their health status and those who are not interested in any such participation. The CRPD recognizes the right of disabled people to work on an equal basis with others and that includes labor rights (United Nations, 2006). The employment rate of disabled people in Iceland in 2011–2012 varies among municipalities; for example the highest employment rate (83%) is in the Westfjords where 70% are in segregated training or sheltered workshops and only 13% in the open labor market (Ministry of Welfare, 2013). When Steindór graduated from upper secondary school, 20 years ago, he obtained a job at a sheltered workshop in Reykjavík‘s suburbs where, for the first few years, the employees did not receive any wages for their labor and had to pay a monthly fee for their participation. Although Steindór considered this to be a good job experience, he found the arrangement extremely unfair and was more than pleased years later when the monthly fee was discontinued and steady wages paid. It was his long-time dream to leave the sheltered workshop and take a job in the open labor market, but he never received the encouragement and support he needed to leave the sheltered work environment. Steindór now says: ‘It was my dream, but today I am happy at the sheltered workshop. I would never get the support I need in the open labor market. It is not going to happen.’
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