Opportunities to support the employment of persons with partial work ability
At the Working ability programme’s closing seminar, partial work ability was approached from the perspectives of social sustainability, inclusion and the service system. The topic was discussed extensively during expert speeches and panel discussions, without forgetting a critical approach. The themes related to the employment of persons with partial work ability and support for their ability to work are topical, especially now that the wellbeing services counties have been launched.
The closing seminar of the Work ability programme promoting the employment and work ability of persons with partial work ability was held on Wednesday 15 February at Helsinki Music Centre. Minister of Employment Tuula Haatainen, who opened the closing seminar, stated at the beginning that issues related to work ability are one of the most common causes of unemployment.
“Wellbeing services counties have started their work, so it is particularly important to ensure seamless cooperation between employment services and social and health care services. This is not how it is currently. Health-related issues must be addressed at an early stage, and rehabilitation must be quickly available so that people can be employed, cope at work and continue working. If we want to extend careers and create a world of work in which everyone can participate, we must also be able to examine the workload. We must understand that both people and work situations are different,” Haatainen suggested.
Applying the full labour force potential is profitable
The closing seminar was divided into three themes. The first theme was opened by Director-General Hannu Mäkinen. He explained why the employment of persons with partial work ability is important.
Mäkinen reminded us that people may often be partially able to work in one position, while being fully able to work in another. “Applying the full labour force potential is economically profitable. Employing persons with partial work ability is also a matter of solidarity, caring about others and equal opportunities for everyone to be employed. It is unreasonable to condemn a person to lifelong unemployment if it can be avoided by taking the appropriate measures,” Mäkinen stated.
In the panel discussion after the speech, the employment of persons with partial work ability was considered important due to the prevailing labour and competence shortages and the impacts of work on health and society. In addition to the subsistence of persons with partial work ability, employing them has an economic impact on our society as a whole. According to practical experiences, diverse work communities are also productive and improve the well-being and motivation of work community members. We should ask whether our society can afford not to employ those with partial work ability in a situation where birth rates are low, and the population is aging.
In order to solve the challenges related to the employment of persons with partial work ability, services supporting work ability must be sufficiently individualised. We must also change our attitudes towards partial work ability and abandon our prejudices. It is therefore important to provide more information and to highlight good examples. Awareness of the possibilities of modifying work and support for employers, such as pay subsidies and subsidies for arranging working conditions, must also be raised.
The second panel discussion of the closing seminar presented the perspective of employers and companies. The participants mentioned that the prevailing labour shortage and matching issue had been crucial factors for hiring people with partial work ability. On the other hand, demonstrating social responsibility has also been important in recruitment: employers have wanted to offer work specifically to persons with partial work ability.
Employers also ponder some issues related to employing persons with partial work ability. What if a person with partial work ability fails to cope at work, takes a long sick leave or retires prematurely? According to the panellists, employers should be provided with more information on opportunities to reduce these risks. Employers should also have access to information on what kind of support is available for orientation and modifying the work for persons with partial work ability. Examples and stories encourage employers to employ people with partial work ability.
Wellbeing services counties create opportunities – how could government agencies be involved?
The last themed discussion was opened by Minister of Social Affairs and Health Hanna Sarkkinen. According to the Minister, work must be above all considered a right. When people are excluded from work, a huge amount of human potential is wasted, which also leads to marginalisation and problems in the national economy.
“Many people with partial work ability are in a situation where their need for support, treatment and rehabilitation has not been identified sufficiently early, and therefore they do not receive the services and subsidies they need. The whole of different services may also prove complicated. In addition, some of the services are overloaded, which is why people have to wait too long for access to the service,” Sarkkinen said.
The Work ability programme has developed services to support work ability, and they will become part of the health and social services centres of the wellbeing services counties that were recently launched. The new structures lay the foundation for individualised services and for identifying the needs for work ability support for unemployed people outside occupational health care. This can be managed better than before as a multidisciplinary work ability support team assesses service needs, organises services, reviews subsidies and assesses the need for rehabilitation. Ideally, support should be provided until employment.
Sarkkinen also highlighted the problems of reconciling services and the subsidy system.
“Beneficiaries of these subsidies should have access to services that support their ability to work and function according to their needs. The current rigidity of the subsidy system may lead to people being directed towards subsidies or services that are not suitable for their situation. Legislation on subsidies has been developed during this government term, but reforms are still needed.”
In the panel discussion after the speech, it was noted that the wellbeing services counties have the opportunity to modify the service offering in their region and consider how to adopt an equal approach to service provision. The panellists mentioned some challenges, such as how seamless, timely and continuous services could be organised and where to find resources for all this. On the other hand, they highlighted municipalities’ good knowledge of the actors in their region, such as organisations whose work plays a major role in supporting work ability.
They also see risks in activities related to multidisciplinary services in wellbeing services counties. If the party responsible for the service package for a person with partial work ability is not clearly defined, the person may end up running in circles between several different parties. It would therefore be important for reforms to be carried out in close cooperation between different actors. Persons with partial work ability should also be involved in the planning.
After the closing seminar of the Work ability programme, many participants had a question that was vocalised by Hannu Mäkinen at the end of his speech. He stated that his question was intentionally provocative.
“Government agencies are part of the social machinery led by democratically elected political leadership. I want to ask why political leadership does not look at their backyard and demand their own agencies to employ people with partial work ability, i.e., to participate in social responsibility, as many major companies do. Is the recruitment of people with partial work ability prevented by the rules of a world past or indifference?”
You can find the material for the closing seminar of the Work ability programme on the website of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment. The website also gives you access to the example videos of companies that have employed people with partial work ability that were showed at the event.