Making the Future of Work Inclusive of People with Disabilities

The future will bring major challenges for society in general and the world of work in particular. These challenges need to be addressed before they arise in order to ensure no one is left behind, especially those most vulnerable, including persons with disabilities. Ensuring an inclusive future of work is part of the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals. Furthermore, article 27 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognises the right of persons with disabilities to work on an equal basis with others. Employability data of persons with disabilities are hard to obtain, however, where data are available the labour market participation rate of persons with disabilities is lower than that of persons without disabilities. The situation of women with disabilities is worse. With the foreseeable changes in the future labour market, this gap could widen further, and action must therefore be taken to ensure this is not the case. The megatrends of the Fourth Industrial Revolution that will shape the future of work are: the technological revolution; the new skills that will be required; the cultural changes being witnessed in society; demographic shifts and the mitigation of climate change. All of these trends are closely interconnected. Throughout this document these key trends are analysed from the perspective of disability and specific actions are identified that are required to design a roadmap toward the desired future of work. This exercise has been carried out aware of the diversity within the population with disabilities, not only considering the different types of disabilities themselves, but also other factors such as gender, age, or economic context. The expected transformations in the future of work entail risks for persons with disabilities, but they also offer opportunities. To mitigate these risks and maximise the opportunities, measures must be urgently put in place, and it is essential that persons with disabilities play an active role in decision-making concerning future employment policies. The following five key objectives for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in the future of work have been identified: New forms of employment and employment relations integrate disability inclusion. Skills development and life-long learning made inclusive of persons with disabilities. Universal Design embedded in development of all new infrastructure, products and services. Assistive technologies, existing and newly developed, to be made affordable and available. Measures to include persons with disabilities in growing and developing areas of the economy. Governments, companies, disability NGOs, trade unions and academia must be encouraged to commit and contribute towards achieving these objectives through different actions. An inclusive future of work can be reached through coordination and alliances among the different stakeholders.