People with Disabilities and Labour Market Barriers: The Perspectives of Israeli Social Workers.

Social workers play a key role in supporting the labour market inclusion of disabled people. Nevertheless, we know little about how they perceive the barriers that disabled people face and their role in addressing them. In particular, we need to know more about the extent to which they adopt an indi...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:British Journal of Social Work Vol. 54; no. 4; pp. 1627 - 1645
Autores principales: Gadot, Limor, Holler, Roni
Formato: research Journal Article
Publicado: Oxford University Press / USA Jun2024
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:Social workers play a key role in supporting the labour market inclusion of disabled people. Nevertheless, we know little about how they perceive the barriers that disabled people face and their role in addressing them. In particular, we need to know more about the extent to which they adopt an individualised versus a social model of disability. To address this gap, semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-three Israeli social workers providing employment-related services via public and non-profit organisations. A thematic analysis revealed that the participants tended to view their clients' barriers as related to individual characteristics, including their impairment, level of functioning and soft skills. Whereas social barriers were acknowledged as well, these were usually framed as related to employers' attitudes, including ignorance, stigma, fear and distrust. In addition, recognition of these social barriers was usually detached from the social workers' daily, individualised practices.