merrion street

Social Protection Minister Joan Burton today attended and spoke at a networking day for third level graduates with disabilities. The event was hosted by AHEAD (Association for Higher Education Access and Disability) together with many companies and organisations like Dell, Covidien and Citi.  

The event aimed to encourage students with disabilities to engage with employers, demonstrate their abilities and consider a career path they might never have thought of.

The Minister said:

 I am delighted to support this initiative; it complements a number of other programmes which I launched earlier this year.  My Department’s Partial Capacity Benefit scheme provides an opportunity for people with disabilities to have their capacity for work assessed and to receive an on-going income support payment from my Department based on this assessment.  My Department also operates the EmployAbility service which offers a range of supports, including workplace adaptation grants, wage subsidies and on-site job coaches and mentors, to people with a disability and to employers. From yesterday, I extended JobBridge, the National Internship Scheme to include people with disabilities who are getting a Disability Allowance.

These programmes and this networking day are key in supporting people with disabilities overcome the challenges not only of adapting to employment and being accepted in the workplace but in demonstrating their productive capability and ability to do the job.