Intervention parameters in vocational rehabilitation of people with disabilities: reflections from a multidisciplinary perspective

Abstract

In this paper the principles, methodology and results obtained after 3 years of multidisciplinary intervention in a vocational rehabilitation (VR) program, CENDI, aimed at promoting the employment of people with physical and/or sensory disabilities in the open labor market in the province of Vizcaya (Spain) are presented. CENDI employment service provision has allowed for formulas to be explored from a multidimensional perspective combining: (1) intervention with disabled candidates along their job seeking process; (2) vocational training in market-demanded areas; and (3) mediation activities in direct contact with employers, job finding and job matching in response to the enterprise needs. This paper will focus on the importance of mediation actions, marketing and job finding activities, as key elements that come to complement the traditional users-centered assessment and guidance services. It will also reflect on the barriers and challenges found, and the evidence of the importance of involving the employers as active agents in VR and exploring their role in providing employment for people with disabilities.