Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 April 2013
497. Deputy Simon Harris asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the guidelines and criteria in place in Government Departments and State agencies to ensure that people with a disability are given equal opportunities to access the public and Civil Service workforce; if conditions on the autistic spectrum specifically Asperger's syndrome are considered in relation to any such policies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16223/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe civil and public service is an equal opportunities employer and all recruitment campaigns are conducted in strict compliance with the Codes of Practice set out by the Commission for Public Service Appointments. Codes include the Code of Practice governing the External and Internal Appointments of Persons with Disabilities to Positions in the Irish Civil Service and Certain Public Bodies, available at www.cpsa.ie.
Public service bodies are also subject to specific legal obligations in the Disability Act 2005. For example, Part 5 of the Act sets out the the requirement of public service bodies:
- to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities;
- to comply with any statutory Code of Practice;
- to meet a target of 3% of employees with disabilities;
- to report every year on achievement of these obligations.
The National Disability Authority (NDA) reports on compliance with this 3% target. In its latest published report in 2012, the NDA noted that in the civil service, the area of the public service for which I have direct responsibility, 4.2% of staff employed had disabilities. In relation to other areas of the public service, each Minister is responsible for compliance with and reporting on the target set in the Disability Act 2005 for the employment of persons with disabilities in public bodies under his or her aegis.
The 3% target for the employment of people with disabilities in the public service remains in place, notwithstanding the recruitment and promotion moratorium announced on 27 March, 2009.
You may also wish to note that a number of Departments and Offices in the civil service are participants in the Willing Able and Mentoring (WAM) Programme which is a paid mentored work placement programme aimed at graduates with disabilities. This programme is not subject to the moratorium.
The Disability Act defines "disability", in relation to a person, as a substantial restriction in the capacity of the person to carry on a profession, business or occupation in the State or to participate in social or cultural life in the State by reason of an enduring physical, sensory, mental health or intellectual impairment.
