THOUGHTS ON SHELTERED EMPLOYMENT

SHELTERED EMPLOYMENT

SHELTERED EMPLOYMENT is a provision of productive work for PWDs through workshops providing special facilities, income producing projects or homework schemes. 

From the video we watched from our EDSP 101 class about sheltered employment, I believe that this source of employment is beneficial and fosters learning, productivity, and self-esteem for people with disabilities and special needs. Though mostly vocational, sheltered employment gives PWDs the right to be provided work that accommodates their disability. 

In the US, people with special needs who are to enter sheltered employment, are being trained and educated by certain institutions dedicated in harnessing the talents and abilities of people with special needs. Like from the video we saw in class, a certain institution started a Shoebox project as a tool in educating them with the routines and process needed for sheltered employment.

In the Philippines, as stated in Section 6 of the RA 7277 or the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities:

If suitable employment for disabled persons cannot be found through open employment as provided in the immediately preceding Section (Section 5: Equal Opportunity for Employment), the State shall endeavor to provide it by means of sheltered employment. In the placement of disabled persons in sheltered employment, it shall accord due regard to the individual qualities, vocational goals and inclinations to ensure a good working atmosphere and efficient production.

 

As stated here, the State is responsible for providing such centers if some PWDs experience a lack of opportunities and suitable employment. The end goal is to enable them to work in integrated work spaces.

Like in the US, the Philippines also provides training in order to develop skills for employment. In Section 9 of RA 7277 it is stated that:

The State shall also take measures to ensure the provisions of vocational rehabilitation and livelihood services for disabled persons in the rural areas. In addition, it shall promote cooperation and coordination between the government and non-government organization and other private entities engaged in vocational rehabilitation activities.

 The Department of Social Welfare and Development shall design and implement training programs that will provide disabled persons with vocational skills to enable them to engage in livelihood activities or obtain gainful employment. 

The Department of Labor and Employment shall likewise design and conduct training programs geared towards providing disabled persons with skills for livelihood.

These provisions provided by the State gives equal opportunities and privileges to people with disabilities. Furthermore, it shapes a society that acknowledges the abilities and contributions of people with disabilities to our country.

References: 

http://www.autismsocietyphilippines.org/2010/09/pwd-employment-rights-and-privileges.html

https://www.kalibrr.com/advice/2015/09/rights-every-working-pwd-should-know-about/

THE NORM, THE DISABILITY, AND THE SOCIETY

How Does Society View and Treat People/Ideas That Go Against The Norm?

According to the Cambridge English Dictionary norm  is defined as an accepted standard or a way of behaving or doing things that most people agree with.

NORMS are an integral part of the organization of all societies, from small tribal groups to modern industrial societies. A majority of these societies expect each member to act according to the laws, morals, acts, and values set by that society. Norms are learned and transmitted in groups from generation to generation. In this way, individuals have incorporated into their own life organization of the language, ideas, and beliefs of the groups to which they belong. Human beings thus see the world not with their eyes alone, for if they saw only with their own eyes, each would see the same thing; rather, they see the world through their cultural and other group experiences. 

Norm can also be defined in terms of Deviance. At the simplest level, deviance refers to something that is different from something else. Deviants are not like “us.” “They” behave differently.

In the past and even for some present societies, a deviant person is often being judged and condemned. In the past, during the eras of extermination and ridicule, people who go against the norm, like those with disability are treated badly and is secluded in the society.

In the animated film The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Esmeralda asks God for deliverance and help for the outcasts. Deviant people during those times are considered outcasts and are kept hidden in the society, like the main character of the story, Quasimodo. 

Disability can be regarded as deviant from a number of perspectives. A person with a disability, because of the limitations imposed on the disabled person's range of activities, but chiefly because of the self-reaction to the person's disability, is often thought to occupy a deviant status, much like that of a minority group member who may experience prejudice and discriminatory treatment from others. (Deegan, 1985)

Not everyone considers persons with physical disabilities to be deviant. 

The reaction of others seems to depend on certain characteristics of the person, the disability, and the social situation. But insofar as disabilities entail departure from social expectation, social stigma is always a possibility for persons with disabilities.

Reference: Sociology of Deviant Behavior (7th edition) by Marshall B. Clinard & Robert F. Meier