Status of Support for Employment and Career Development
of Persons with Disabilities ( 1/2 )

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1. Employment securing process for graduates from schools for persons with disabilities

Flow of persons with disabilities being employed and taking a job	Fig. 1. (Reference1)
Goals for employment of persons with disabilities	Fig.2. (Reference2)

(1) Situation of persons with disabilities seeking employment

The number of persons with disabilities seeking employment through public employment security offices continues to increase, particularly for persons with intellectual or mental disabilities.

• The number (155,180) of persons with disabilities seeking jobs at public employment security offices in 2002 was double that of 1993 (71,527).
• The increase is particularly remarkable for persons with intellectual disabilities that increased 2.6 times and the persons with mental disabilities that increased 3.4 times.
• A significant number go to high schools for persons with intellectual disabilities not only from middle courses in schools for persons with intellectual disabilities, but from ordinary middle schools. It seems that the students with slight disabilities are the one most in need of employment.
• Because of the long recession, the number of layoffs is at a high level.

(2) Main organizations offering job support

Various types of job support services for persons with disabilities are offered at various levels. These integrate development of professional abilities with follow-up.

1) Vocational training school for people with disabilities

(The schools are established by the central government and operated by local governments (prefectures) as well as the Japan Organization for Employment of the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities.) (National schools 13, municipal schools 6)These schools are designed to offer job training for workers with disabilities, with special consideration on training subjects and training methods, and responding to the characteristics of disabilities and progress of technical innovations.
* Facilities for development of ability in the private sector (These facilities are run by private business owners and civil code juridical persons) (18 facilities) These facilities are intended to offer job training relating to abilities of persons with disabilities for employment (they must comply with the standard set by the Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare).

2) Public employment security office

(Run by the central government) (478 offices)
Public employment security offices register persons with disabilities seeking jobs. (Persons with disabilities also can be supported by these offices after they accept employment.). At the public employment security office, experts and employment advisors, according to the ease work system, consult with persons with disabilities, provide information of job openings, and assist persons with disabilities in keeping their jobs.

3) Vocational rehabilitation institutes for persons with disabilities

(Run by the Japan Organization for Employment of the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities)

• National Institute of Vocational Rehabilitation (one institute) is engaged in the research and development of high-level vocational rehabilitation technologies, and training of professional staff.
• Wide-area institutes of vocational rehabilitation (3 institutes) is engaged in vocational rehabilitation and works closely with schools for career development of disabled persons and medical facilities.
• District institutes of vocational rehabilitation for persons with disabilities (one institute in every prefecture, 5 branch institute); covering the vocational rehabilitation services, such as
  - Professional vocational evaluation
  - Vocational guidance
  - Support for job preparation
  - Job coach business
  - Job instruction and training

4) Employment support center for persons with disabilities

(Run by civil code juridical persons designated by prefectural governors) (14 centers)
At the community level, these centers provide detailed vocational support, including vocational preparation training for persons with disabilities who have a particularly difficult time finding employment, and registration of individuals and groups willing to offer support for persons with disabilities when seeking employment.

5) Employment and life support center for persons with disabilities (the activities are developed in the category of social welfare) (47 centers)

At the local level, these centers provide counseling regarding everyday issues to persons with disabilities in coordination with related organizations for employment, welfare and education in the neighborhood. They also provide support for persons with disabilities when accepting employment.

(3) Vocational rehabilitation of persons with disabilities

(3)-1 Vocational rehabilitation of persons with disabilities at labor-related organizations

Vocational rehabilitation activities for persons with disabilities are developed at labor-related organizations. These activities include a job counseling program, job- preparation, and employment of persons with disabilities, job and life support for persons with disabilities and vocational training.

1) Job coach programs

(This program is operated by local vocational centers for persons with disabilities)
This program is designed to improve job skills of persons with disabilities, providing detailed staff support by dispatching job counselors to workplaces. After the program was started, the work commitment rate was 87% (6 months after the end of the program which was completed in December 2002 for 905 people with disabilities).

2) Support program for work preparation

(Operated by local vocational centers for persons with disabilities)
The local vocational centers for persons with disabilities provide appropriate support for each person through a combination of work training for basic job skills, training for obtaining social life skills (SST) to improve basic human relationships, and vocational and employment seminars as well as vocational rehabilitation to enhance the readiness of persons with disabilities to accept employment.

3) Employment and life support centers for persons with disabilities

These centers focus on the formation of a local network covering employment, health, welfare, and education to help improve self-reliance of persons with disabilities in the area, providing comprehensive support in all areas of employment and life.

• Guidance, advice and counseling relating to employment, including referral of preparatory employment training
• Guidance on life for persons with disabilities accepting employment (residence and leisure activities)
• Advice at the window, and daily counseling at the centers and advice provided during visits to home and work sites
• Contact and coordination with related organizations to respond to the needs of users.

4) Program for trial employment of persons with disabilities

(Operated by public employment security offices)
This program offers a short period trial employment (three months) at business establishments to create occasions for persons with disabilities to take employment, and to promote transition to regular employment.
Financial incentives are provided to business owners by public employment security offices. The amount of the incentive is 50,000 yen/month per employee.

5) Vocational training

(Career development school for persons with disabilities)
Vocational training provides skills and training for employment and assumes the role of encouraging employment of persons with disabilities and of improving the quality of their career.

(3)-2 Support of persons with disabilities in employment and taking jobs in the fields of education, and welfare

1) Vocational education and career guidance at the senior course of the school for persons with disabilities

At the senior course of the school for persons with disabilities, assistance in securing employment is provided through vocational education and career guidance (job education in school, on-the-job education and career guidance at industrial sites).
The school for persons with intellectual disabilities provides vocational education and career guidance by offering vocational subjects, and through coordination, cooperation, and creation of networks between the school and related support organizations and business entities. These efforts support persons with disabilities as they make the transition from school to society, with close cooperation between labor related organizations for vocational rehabilitation, including vocational training schools and schools for persons with disabilities.

2) Vocational rehabilitation at social welfare facilities

At social welfare facilities in which most of graduates from the senior course of the school for persons with disabilities end up, there are welfare workshops, vocational aid centers and workplaces for vocational rehabilitation.

1. Welfare workshops where persons with disabilities seek well-paying jobs.
2. Vocational aid centers and workplaces assuming the function of both training and social welfare employment (labor)
3. With focus on social participation and purpose of life, staffs at these facilities support transition to ordinary employment, through job experience and job guidance. These facilities also offer daily creative activities and light work for persons with disabilities.

3) Program for the development of social aptitude; vocational rehabilitation in mental heath and medical treatment

This program provides the persons with intellectual disabilities with an opportunity to attend business establishments for a certain period of time to receive social aptitude training for the purpose of fostering concentration ability, human relationship, and endurance in working and environmental adaptation.
Business establishments receiving persons with disabilities under this program may be awarded a cooperation subsidy (2,000 yen a day).

• Number of eligible projects in 2001; workplaces 1936, operators 3,895
• Training period: in principle, 6 months (renewable, not exceeding three years)

(4) Employment of persons with disabilities as regular employees (in FY2001)

1) Career guidance for the students of schools for persons with disabilities

The employment rate of graduates from the senior course of the school for persons with disabilities is 11.9% for persons with physical disabilities and 23.7% for persons with intellectual disabilities. For those receiving vocational training at career development schools, the rate is 5.0 % for persons with physical disabilities and 2.6% for persons with intellectual disabilities. Most of the graduates enter social welfare facilities (48.4% of persons with physical disabilities and 58.5% of persons with intellectual disabilities)

2) Percentage of persons with disabilities making the transition from vocational aid centers to regular employment

The fact-finding survey by the vocational aid centers revealed that in 943 facilities surveyed, 320 persons with disabilities or 0.8% have switched to regular employment.

3) Employment rate of graduates from the career development schools for persons with disabilities

Looking at the employment (FY 2002) of persons with disabilities via referral by public employment security offices, we learn that the employment rate of those having received vocational training at career development schools for persons with disabilities is considerably high, i.e., 57.1%, while the percentage of jobs to effective job seekers is 18.3%.

	Enrollees (persons)	Employment rate(%)	Employment cases/ job seekers in the total of persons with disabilities
FY 1998	1536	56.9	22.1
FY 1999	1541	56.8	20.9
FY 2000	1484	58.6	21.5
FY 2001	1487	56.9	18.8
FY 2002	1586	57.1	18.3

4) Overview of employment of people with disabilities

• For the employment of people with disabilities, the law relating to the promotion of persons with disabilities employment provides a system for the employment of persons with disabilities.
• In the private sector, at least 1.8 % of total employees must be people with disabilities.
• The employment rate of persons with disabilities has continued increasing since 1992, but in 2004, it turned down for the first time in 15 years (1.49% in the previous year).
• The percentage of firms not reaching the legal employment rate of 1.8% is 57.5%.
• In particular, although small size companies (having 56 to 99 employees), have made considerable efforts to employ people with disabilities, there was a large drop in the employment rate to 1.52% (1.63 % in the previous year).
• The number of employees with disabilities is 246,000, 7000 less than the previous year.
• The number of workers with disabilities who are laid off has remained at a high level since 1997, even though in 2002, the number of such workers was 2,962, smaller than 4,017 in 2001 ( Reference 3).
• Rapid IT progress and marketing services underway are qualitatively changing employment of persons with disabilities. IT progress makes it possible to enlarge the possibility for persons with disabilities to work at home, providing a way to have jobs for persons with severe disabilities who is homebound and unable to commute to work, while along with the progress in marketing services, a strong necessity arises for further expanding new job areas for persons with disabilities, especially in the fields of service, expertise and technology.
• However, the current situation features a large job market in the manufacturing field for persons with disabilities, the majority of whom work as technicians, manufacturing workers and in the field of personnel management, so no noticeable progress in employment of persons with disabilities is seen in new employment areas with a larger labor market of new recruits (service, wholesales, retail, eating and drinking establishments, professional and technical jobs, sales).

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