Sandra de Lourde Olave Vera Master en Integracin de Personas con Discapacidad Profesional de Empleo con Apoyo Directora de Proyecto

de Programa de Empleo Integrado Arando Esperanza Representante Empleo con Apoyo Chile Fundacin Emplea Espaa sandraolave@arandoesperanza.cl

Application of a Training and Employment Support Program for individuals with disabilities Abstract In year 2004, In Chile began a training program specially designed for integration individuals with disabilities into a regular job position; provide it by a formal company in the industrial and services sector. In the design of the program, it is quite important to take in consideration: Unemployment rate Type of industrial sector A precise description of positions requirements Definition of tasks and activities to be perform by the worker At the same time, it is necessary to work with institutions devoted to work with individuals with disabilities so a primary selection of potentials individuals able to fit job requirements can be done. Also, it is necessary to design the apprenticeship guide which will be use it during training and also to give a right training to the people who is going to give the employment support on the job site plus (natural support relations) and after the process is done, to do the following and evaluation of the process. After eight years applying this approach, one of the main conclusions is that training for the specific job it is a key element in the support employment process. This aspect it is a by folded situation. On one hand, individuals with disabilities feels more confident about what he supposed to do and therefore more enthusiastic and integrated to the society, leaving in the past a serious of events and situations of discrimination and lack of

opportunities that they went through their lives. On that regard, dignity became an important word for all those individuals. On the other side, employers feels more satisfy because that person is performing like a normal worker, leaving behind a charity approach. In this period of time, 1271 individual from different types of disability has been trained as potential workers. Hiring process depends basically of the type of position, job conditions and personal capabilities as well. One of the important lessons learned is that mostly of the individuals have to go through an assisted process before to get into a fully independent job, mostly related with social skills. Roughly, around 55% are able to get into a regular job, which is a very high rate for this kind of program. Succeed rely heavenly on a social worker ability and contacts in the industrial sector. People who get into a formal job, coming from a low income sector, which means for them a series of new thing to be learned, related mainly with what is all about to be an active individual in this society, improving radically their life quality and the opportunities which are available. Model has proved to be successful based on the results achieved with job inclusion, and the money spend for every individual who get into the program. Room for improvement has to deal mainly with the 45% which is not able to get a job. Certainly there is something to be done in order to decrease that amount of people.