asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will grant concession by way of cheaper insurance stamps to all employers who engage the services of handicapped or mildly handicapped persons.
Ceistéanna—Questions Oral Answers - Insurance Stamps.
15.
The grant of concessions of this kind is not contemplated at present.
Is it possible the Parliamentary Secretary might compensate in the future?
I do not think so. I am sure the Deputy did not intend this personally but it might be construed that to give a concession of this kind implies that people in the category mentioned by the Deputy do not give a fair day's work for a fair day's pay. I do not think this will be reviewed.
We would all have the sensitivity to which the Parliamentary Secretary has referred. On the other hand, I understand from industrialists that they would be prepared to employ people who are mildly retarded. However, the reluctance is there in so far as they are in a competing world. If they got some encouragement in the future they might be willing to do this. They all accept that a handicapped person will not be able to give the same return as a person who is not handicapped.
I do not accept the general conception that a handicapped person does not give a fair day's work for a fair day's wages. Although a person may be handicapped, as far as his work is concerned he may be able to do it as efficiently as a person who is not handicapped.
Would it not be considered more socially desirable to introduce legislation requiring employers with more than 50 employees to employ handicapped people to represent six per cent of their staff?
All I can say is that it is undoubtedly socially desirable that employers would employ handicapped persons.
May I ask the Parliamentary Secretary whether he is implying that I indicated that a handicapped person does not give a fair return? On the contrary, I did not imply that. I made the point that his return may not be comparable with that of a healthier person and, because of that, an industrialist might not be prepared to employ him whereas he might be if the Parliamentary Secretary would give him some little financial encouragement.
I should like to point out that I qualified my remarks by saying that, knowing the Deputy personally, I am sure that is not the construction he put on it.
That is the construction the Parliamentary Secretary put on it.
It is quite possible that handicapped persons might not agree with this in so far as it might differentiate between them and people who are giving only the same return for a day's work.
Question No. 16.