A/HRC/22/25 instruments affirm that respect for the right to work imposes on States parties an obligation to take measures aimed at the realization of full employment. 6. The ILO has adopted a wide range of instruments relevant for the right to work, including the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998) and the Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization (2008). It has also formulated the concept of “decent work,” based on the understanding that work is a source of personal dignity, family stability, peace in the community, democracies that deliver for people, and economic growth that expands opportunities for productive jobs and enterprise development.2 The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has further elaborated on the concept in its general comment No. 18 (2005) on the right to work, stating that decent work respects the fundamental rights of individuals and provides an income allowing workers to support themselves and their families, and includes respect for the physical and mental integrity of the worker in the exercise of her/his employment (para. 7). III. Work and employment of persons with disabilities 7. According to global estimates, persons with disabilities constitute some 15 per cent of the world‟s population. Between 785 million and 975 million of them are of working age (15 years or older)3 and most live in developing countries where the informal economy employs a substantial proportion of the labour force. The labour force participation rate of persons with disabilities is low in many countries. Recent figures for members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development indicate that slightly less than half of working-age persons with disabilities were economically inactive compared to one in five persons without disabilities of working age.4 While it is difficult to draw comparisons between countries on rates of unemployment due to national differences in definitions on disability and statistical methodology, it is clear that an employment gap exists across countries and regions. 8. When persons with disabilities are employed, they are more likely to be in lowpaying jobs, at lower occupational levels and with poor promotional prospects and working conditions. More often than their peers, they are in part-time jobs or temporary positions, often with few possibilities for career development. The obstacles that persons with disabilities face in this regard are often related to negative attitudes or opinions, deeply rooted stigma and stereotypes and lack of interest of governments, employers and the general population. Lack of access to education and training in skills relevant to the labour market are also major barriers. Persons with disabilities are often seen as unfit for working life, incapable of carrying out tasks, as required in the open labour market, or better off in protected environments such as sheltered workshops. 9. Article 27 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities sets out the right to work of persons with disabilities; it constitutes one of the most detailed provisions of the Convention, establishing the legal framework for State obligations in relation to work and employment of persons with disabilities. 2 3 4 4 ILO, Decent work agenda, see http://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/decent-work-agenda/lang-en/index.htm. World Health Organization and the World Bank, World Report on Disability, 2011, p. 261, available at http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2011/9789240685215_eng.pdf. Ibid., p. 237.