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Continued efforts to promote job opportunities for disabled
The Government will be setting itself a new target for the employment of people with a disability with a pledge made by the Governor, the Rt Hon Christopher Patten, that 4,400 such people will be employed in the civil service by the end of 1997.
The pledge was one of the series of specific actions to promote job opportunities for people with disability outlined by the Governor at today's (Friday) summit meeting on open employment of people with disability.
On other important initiatives, the Governor noted that the Government would be increasing the number of supported employment places in the coming year from 360 to 950 (a massive increase of 164 per cent) to give people with a disability more financial independence and self-respect.
Mr Patten disclosed that another move which would be directly relevant to the issue was the proposed issue of Codes of Practice on employment by the Equal Opportunities Commission to provide guidelines for employers on fair and lawful employment practices.
On the part of the Labour Department, the Governor said the department would continue with its programme of educational and promotional activities designed to improve public understanding of people with a disability.
The department's Selective Placement Division would be searching out new job opportunities, helping to make disabled job seekers more employable and organising a large-scale seminar to highlight the contribution that people with a disability could make in the workplace, he said.
Within the Government, the Governor said the specific actions would include:
The compilation of a database by the Civil Service Branch to identify types of posts which can be taken up by the mentally handicapped and the mentally or ex-mentally ill;
The organisation of seminar for government departments to promote the employment of people with a disability in the civil service;
The increase from 25 to 30 the number of visits to departments by Civil Service Branch and the Labour Department to promote the government's policy on the recruitment of people with a disability.