The right to work for men and women with disabilities - successful collaboration between employers and support systems using the workplace as an arena for work inclusion

The employment rate of persons with disabilities across Europe is much lower than of the general population and the disability employment gap has remained considerable, independently of labour market policies. Over time different approaches to work inclusion of persons with disabilities have been developed, where support-side approaches, especially supported employment methods, that are using the workplaces as instruments of inclusion, have been shown effective. The collaboration between employer and the support system is crucial when using the workplace as an arena for work inclusion, but there is a lack of research on employer-support system relations and how they can be formed to facilitate increased employment of persons with disabilities. Using theoretical frameworks from the field of sociology and psychology, and by drawing conclusions from qualitative data, this project addresses successful collaboration between employers and support systems in work inclusion of men and women with disabilities. Results from observation/interview studies in Norway and Sweden and insights from a literature review will inform support-side approaches and facilitate work inclusion. During the fellowship will benefit from the expertise of the INTEGRATE core research group, at OsloMet - Oslo Metropolitan University and its international expert network and from short visits to other European excellence research centers in work inclusion. Building on my previous work and skills in labour market and disability research, the project activities will lead to further development of my professional maturity as a researcher, while the results will have a key impact on the development of effective support-side methods and as called for in EU policies, on the labour market participation of persons with disabilities.