SHELTERED OR SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT OPTIONS FOR SECONDARY EDUCATION STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES?

The transformations in production and labour market of the last decades and the stormy global economic crisis have diversified and made particularly difficult the conditions for the inclusion of people with disabilities into the labour market and the society in general. Students with disabilities are at high risk of unemployment and a high percentage of those who work are employed in low-paid jobs. Employment is vital for them not only for a dignified life, but also for active participation in the community. In general, they face several limitations when trying to find or maintain a job they already have. It is a common belief that people with disabilities are not able to work, except perhaps in separate and Sheltered work environments (sheltered employment) where they will be safe enough. Such negative attitudes affect decisively their success or failure to secure a job or maintain an existing one. Sheltered employment has been at the core of the vocational training and employment system for young people with significant intellectual disabilities throughout the twentieth century, and most of them continue to work within isolated and Sheltered areas. According to our literature review the emergence of supported forms of employment has brought forward a real alternative, especially for students with intellectual disabilities. Unlike the sheltered and segregated forms of employment, supported employment enables paid employment, within the community, under conditions of continuous support, and has proven to be more effective over time. Based on the concept of self-determination it emphasizes personal strengths, goals and choices and the important role of the community for the improvement and development of the disabled individual.