In Ukraine, about 2 million people with disabilities need employment. This number will only grow, because, unfortunately, many military and civilians are disabled as a result of Russia’s war against Ukraine. This was emphasized by Daria Sydorenko, executive director of the NGO “League of the Strong”, at a discussion on “Labor rights of persons with disabilities” held at Ukraine Crisis Media Center.
“We are talking about the first step in reforming the employment system to ensure the rights of people with disabilities to find the job they want to work. The draft law 5344-d is a framework bill. As we see, the legislation that existed until now does not allow people with disabilities to find the job they want,” emphasized Executive Director Daria Sydorenko.
According to Daria Sydorenko, the draft law 5344-d proposes positive changes that can be the first step in the reform system. Among them is the possibility for all employers to receive compensation for providing reasonable adaptation and arrangement of workplaces. Previously, this was only possible in certain cases.
The draft law also encourages the employment of people with disabilities who have a disability group I or II with visual or mental disabilities.
Among other positive changes, Daria Sydorenko notes the replacement of sanctions with a mandatory fee for not employing people with disabilities.
“We see in court practice that the current legal provisions are quite easy to circumvent. Accordingly, employers are not interested in hiring a person with a disability and do not pay any sanctions for this. According to the amendments, the employer must either hire a person with a disability or pay a fee for not hiring him or her. This fee should be used to stimulate and develop the employment system,” adds Daria Sydorenko.
At the same time, according to experts from the League of the Strong NGO, the draft law contains certain points that need to be further developed. These include reasonable accommodation, non-discriminatory norms, and workplace arrangements for individual entrepreneurs with disabilities.
Earlier, public associations working to protect the rights of people with disabilities appealed to MPs, heads of parliamentary factions, and the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to support draft law No. 5344-d “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Ensuring the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to Work.” The full text of the appeal is available here .