The figures are implacable: 52% of women with disabilities, compared to 36% of men, believe that things are more difficult for them at work, according to the IFOP-LADAPT survey “Being a woman with a disability, double jeopardy? “, carried out in 2022. Similarly, nearly half of women with disabilities surveyed consider their job search difficult, compared to 29% of all men and 33% of all women. “Being a woman and with a disability can be a combination of risks from the point of view of employment and career”hammered Carole Grandjean, Minister Delegate in charge of Education and Vocational Training at the Ministry of Labour, during the opening session of the 9th edition of the Trophies for Women in adapted companies (EA) and in establishments and services assistance through work (ESAT), organized on March 14 in Paris by the consultancy firm RéseauH (in partnership with La Tribune).
Faced with the challenges of employing people with disabilities, whose unemployment rate remains double (13%) that of the population as a whole, the government has bet on training: strengthening apprenticeship, CDD springboards for adapted companies, bridges between the protected and ordinary environment… So many subjects which will be on the program of the next National Conference on Disability, where the question of women will be “very present and at the heart of our discussions and our commitments”assured Jean-Christophe Combe, Minister of Solidarity, Autonomy and People with Disabilities.
On the ground, some progress in terms of integration is emerging. “Results of the 2005 School Inclusiveness Act are starting to show resultsbelieves Isabelle Rouberol, head of the mission for the employment of disabled people at the Ministry of Labour. Higher education welcomes 40,000 students with disabilities each year, two-thirds of whom are women. » As for learning, “it is still limited for people with disabilities but on a very favorable slope”she adds, urging employers to seize it, especially since aid exists and there is no age limit for disabled workers. “It is in immersion that we see if the person is able to fill the position beyond a list of restrictions which may not be very meaningful”she analyzes.
Boost “employability”
Still, the employment rate of disabled workers, in companies with more than 250 employees, stands at 3.5% – far from the 6% obligation required by law… “Employers often don’t know how to do it”, notes Isabelle Rouberol. At their disposal, however, a panoply of actors, from Agefiph to Cap emploi, to support them and raise their employability. It is still necessary to have an HR department to seize it. Gold “few SMEs have one”, notes François Asselin, President of the Confederation of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (CPME). That said, “An SME manager must embrace this human wealth. This means successfully recruiting, welcoming and integrating the disabled person into the company and then building their loyalty. » Courses of action? CPME Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, for example, has disability developers who work with members. Another solution, shared disability missions, in place in certain branches of activity. “Disability is no longer a difficulty from the moment you are supported. It’s a question of job layout and it’s not a mountain to climb”considers François Asselin.
Duty of reasonable accommodation
Especially since not adapting workstations entails risks for employers… “There has been an obligation for a long time, which is part of safety and health at work, to follow the indications and opinions of the occupational doctor when he recommends a workstation adjustment, recalls Fabienne Jégu, disability expert advisor to the Defender of Rights. Moreover, since 2010, the Court of Cassation has specified that the repeated refusal to follow the recommendations of occupational medicine constitutes moral harassment. Finally, the obligation to accommodate positions is part of a broader system: the prohibition of all forms of discrimination linked to disability and, as such, the obligation to provide reasonable accommodation. » In short, measures that concern both access and exercise and development in employment. This includes the accessibility of work premises, but also, for example, the adaptation of business software.
Etienne Mazereeuw, occupational physician at Enedis, gives some concrete examples, such as that of a woman with a herniated disc, fibromyalgia and partial deafness. “She needs individual sound barriers, a suitable chair and an electronically height-adjustable desk. This has costs, but is ultimately not very expensive. Also, she does a maximum of one hour of telephone per day as well as more remote work., he explains. Beyond positions, “we are implementing mission adjustments”, adds Delphine Luginbuhl, Diversity Manager, Human Resources, Transformation, Health and Safety Department at Enedis. So, “we work in a multidisciplinary way to provide managers and HR with procedures to identify the impact of disability on the performance that we can expect and potentially adapt the performance evaluation objectives”she develops.
Promote gateways
Another lever to facilitate equal opportunities for disabled workers, the bridges between the protected environment and direct employment. In this respect, the ESATs and EAs, real pools of skills, cover 200 professions and have 150,000 professionals with disabilities, some of whom work for the client. At Leroy Merlin, “today we have an employment rate of workers with disabilities around 5%, which has been increasing for two years, with the objective of reaching at least 6% in the next three years”, testifies Stéphanie Rigaud, Diversity and Inclusion Manager for the brand. Progress that involves the direct recruitment of employees, but also by calling on the protected sector adapted through the intermediary of secondments. Logistics, order preparation, management of the return of goods are concerned.
Other gateways are possible, notes for his part Mehdi Nabti, vice-president of the Gesat Network, including indirect partnerships in subcontracting as well as co-contracting.
Finally, to highlight the skills of workers in ESAT, the Différent et Compétent network has developed with the directors of ESAT a system to recognize and promote the skills of people with disabilities, says Claire de Wailly, director of Différent and Competent, which is also working on a digital notebook in which validated skills can be entered. Especially since a recent law defines new rights for ESAT workers. “We are no longer there only to protect and provide work for people with disabilities, but to support them and put them on the path”, she says. This involves training local supervisors who now become skills developers.
The long road to diversity
Finally, more broadly, the whole issue of professional equality was discussed during the event. Gender equality may have been proclaimed a major cause for the five-year term, but women are still today concentrated in ten sectors, among the 87, and overrepresented in low-skilled trades. However, beyond social justice, diversity has an economic interest. “Studies have shown that if all the sectors were mixed, there would be an influx of GDP in France of the order of 330 billion dollars”, pointed out Marie-Pierre Rixain, MP for Essonne and member of the High Council for Equality between Women and Men. Finally, Ralph Buchter, president of Séquences Clés Production and winner of the HeforShe 2021 Prize, is convinced: “Wanting to form multiple teams is a richness and forces you to rethink the ways of doing things”.