A/HRC/22/25
or accepts8 is not realized when the only real opportunity open to persons with disabilities is
to work in sheltered facilities, often under substandard conditions. In this spirit, the
Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has pointed out that arrangements
whereby persons with a certain category of disability are effectively confined to certain
occupations or to the production of certain goods may violate the right to work. 9
19.
States parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities have a
duty to raise awareness among employers and the general public on the right of persons
with disabilities to work, including on the obligations of different actors in realizing this
right in the open labour market. Some submissions to this study show good practices to this
end. For instance, Peru and Serbia have initiated State-led efforts aimed at raising
awareness among employers on the rights of persons with disabilities with a view to
eliminating stereotypes related to the capacity of persons with disabilities to work.
B.
Discrimination against persons with disabilities in work and
employment
20.
Discrimination on the basis of disability is defined in article 2 of the Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as “any distinction, exclusion or restriction on the
basis of disability which has the purpose or effect of impairing or nullifying the recognition,
enjoyment or exercise, on an equal basis with others, of all human rights and fundamental
freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field. It includes all
forms of discrimination, including denial of reasonable accommodation”.
21.
While the full realization of economic, social and cultural rights, including the right
to work, is subject to progressive realization (art. 4, para. 2),10 the prohibition of
discrimination on the basis of disability is an obligation with immediate effect. States
parties have an obligation to prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability and must
ensure that persons with disabilities are protected from discrimination (art. 5, para. 2),
including with regard to all matters concerning all forms of employment (art. 27, para. 1
(a)) as in any other area.
22.
Protection from discrimination covers all forms of employment: in the open labour
market as well as in sheltered or supported employment schemes. Prohibition of de jure and
de facto discrimination should cover all aspects of employment, including, but not limited
to, the following:
(a)
processes;
Recruitment processes such as advertising, interviewing and other selection
(b)
Review of hiring standards to remove indirect discrimination that places
persons with disabilities at a disadvantage;
(c)
(d)
and leave;
8
9
10
Recruitment decisions;
Terms and conditions of employment such as remuneration rates, work hours
See International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, art. 6, para. 1.
See the Committee‟s general comment No. 5 (1994) on persons with disabilities, para. 21. The
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has also expressed concern over reserved
employment, such as the field of “blind massage,” for example, which discriminates against persons
with disabilities in their vocational and career choices (CRPD/C/CHN/CO/1, para. 41).
See also International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, art. 2, para. 1.
7
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