MODERN ASPECTS OF SOCIAL PROTECTION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES: FOREIGN PRACTICES AND EXPERIENCE FOR UKRAINE

Abstract

The article analyzes innovative foreign practices in socially protecting persons with disabilities. The implementation of the right of a disabled person to lead an independent lifestyle is carried out through his social protection, the purpose of which is to compensate for the limitations of life activities that persons with disabilities have and thus equalize their opportunities in comparison with other people. This goal is achieved by creating an accessible environment, providing rehabilitation, material support, and social services, as well as providing benefits. Thus, the analyzed activity is multifaceted and requires comprehensive regulation by various branches of public administration.

The state policy towards persons with disabilities aims: firstly, to ensure their maximum participation in the economic and social life of society and significantly to stimulate their employment and participation in the labor market; secondly, to provide a guaranteed income so that persons with disabilities are not deprived of the opportunity to live with dignity because of their disability. The main task of the policy pursued by most economically developed countries is to combine these largely incompatible goals. Since cash assistance does not always contribute to the participation of a disabled person in society and does not constantly stimulate him to seek work actively, the legislation of many countries, in addition to cash payments, provides for measures that guarantee a person's participation in economic and social life. In many countries, state subsidies are applied to enterprises that use the labor of persons with disabilities. As a rule, subsidies are provided only when a person with a disability is guaranteed to receive the same salary as an employee without a disability in a similar position and has a long-term employment contract. Subsidies are mainly provided in the workplace for a person with a disability, the purchase of specialized equipment, etc. In some countries, employers receive benefits from contributions to social insurance funds.

In many countries, people with disabilities can participate in various training and vocational training programs implemented at enterprises. People with disabilities can also participate in state vocational training programs without having to be unemployed for a certain minimum period. In most countries, there are specialized enterprises that use the labor of disabled people. However, such enterprises are not considered a workplace for a person with a disability but a «backup option» for employment when it is not possible to find a workplace on general terms for all. Such enterprises also use the labor of people with severe disabilities for whom it is physically impossible or extremely difficult to create the necessary working conditions at a regular enterprise.