Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (Disabled Persons) Convention, 1983 (No. 159) - China (Ratification: 1988)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Articles 2, 3 and 5 of the Convention. Implementation of a national policy on vocational rehabilitation and employment of people with disabilities. The Committee welcomes the detailed information provided by the Government in relation to the laws, regulations, programmes, and policies adopted during the reporting period, such as the Outline for Accelerating the Process Towards Prosperity for Persons with disabilities during the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan Period. The Outline stipulates the goals, policies, and measures on promoting the rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities from 2016 to 2020. These goals include inter alia: (i) promoting programmes to improve vocational skills of person with disabilities; (ii) implementation of employment programmes for person with disabilities in Government agencies; (iii) establishing entrepreneurship incubators for persons with disabilities; (iv) and increasing the number of model institutions for the supportive employment of person with disabilities. The Committee notes with interest that, according to the Government’s report, that implementation of the Thirteenth Five-Year Plan has led to an increase in the number of registered employed persons with disabilities in urban and rural areas by an additional 1.425 million persons, resulting in a total of 8.627 million persons with disabilities in employment (a 53.6 per cent employment rate). The Committee notes that, in its efforts to promote the employment of persons with disabilities, the Government consults the China Federation of Persons with Disabilities, the representative organization of persons with disabilities in China, as well as employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed updated information, including statistical data disaggregated by age and sex, on the nature, scope and impact of the measures taken to promote productive, sustainable and freely chosen employment for persons with disabilities, including employment and vocational rehabilitation programmes and active labour market policy measures focussing on promoting the employment of persons with disabilities in the open labour market.

Article 4. Equality of opportunity and treatment. The Government indicates that the Regulation on the Employment of Persons with Disabilities stipulates that employing units shall provide workers with disabilities with working conditions and protections appropriate to their physical condition and shall not discriminate against workers with disabilities in terms of promotion, titles, remuneration, social protection, and social welfare. The Committee nevertheless notes that the Government does not provide information on the application of the principle of equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women with disabilities. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide updated information, including statistical data disaggregated by age and sex, on the nature, scope and impact of measures taken to give effect to Article 4, with a view to ensuring equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation between persons with disabilities and persons without disabilities, as well as between men and women with disabilities.

Article 8. Services in rural areas and remote communities. The Government indicates that two programmes to support the provision of employment services in rural areas for persons with disabilities were implemented concurrently during the reporting period. The “Sunshine Base for Poverty Alleviation” programme seeks to promote stable employment. It also provides practical skills and training for 500,000 persons with disabilities in poverty in rural areas in central and western China. The second programme seeks to alleviate poverty among persons with disabilities in rural areas. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that it has fulfilled its goal of lifting all persons with disabilities in rural areas who are registered in its database, out of poverty. The Government also indicates that the Opinions on the Work of Strengthening and Expanding the Results of Poverty Alleviation for Persons with Disabilities has been published, with the aim of preventing persons with disabilities from slipping back into poverty. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide updated and detailed information, including statistical data disaggregated by age, sex and region, on the nature, scope and impact of the vocational rehabilitation and employment services, including the training and professional guidance services, available to persons with disabilities in rural areas and remote communities.

Article 9. Training of suitably qualified staff. The Committee notes that, during the reporting period, the professional training institutions in the country have trained 2,500 employment counsellors who provide support services to persons with mental and psychological disabilities to assist them in accessing employment. The Government indicates that, in 2020, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security approved a new subcategory of “employment counsellor for persons with disabilities” under the job category of “employment counsellor”. The Government adds that the China Federation of Persons with Disabilities is actively collaborating with the Ministry to expand the pool of employment counsellors and to promote their professional development. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide detailed updated information, including disaggregated statistical data, on the nature and impact of measures taken or envisaged to ensure the availability of suitably qualified staff responsible for the vocational guidance, education and training, as well as the employment of persons with disabilities on the open labour market.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Articles 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the Convention. Implementation of a national policy on vocational rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities. The Committee welcomes the detailed information provided by the Government on the laws, regulations and policies adopted during the reporting period, such as the Outline on the Development of China's Disability Work during the Twelfth Five-Year Plan Period and the Outline of Development-oriented Poverty Reduction for Persons with Disabilities in Rural Areas (2011–20). The Government indicates that the Outline of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan Period stipulates the goals, policies and measures on promoting the rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities from 2011 to 2015. Goals on rehabilitation include improving rehabilitation service networks and protection mechanisms and accelerating the training of professional rehabilitation personnel so as to preliminarily achieve the goal of providing “Rehabilitation service for all”. Other rehabilitation goals concern carrying out comprehensive community-based rehabilitation services and implementing rehabilitation projects to help 13 million persons with disabilities rehabilitate to various degrees. Goals of the Outline with respect to employment include improving policies and measures of employment promotion and protection of persons with disabilities, stabilizing and expanding their employment, improving their employment quality, encourage them to start businesses and achieve the goal of new employment for one million urban persons with disabilities. In order to promote the employment of persons with disabilities, the Committee notes that the Government consults with organizations of persons with disabilities and with employers’ and workers’ organizations, as well as organizations serving persons with disabilities. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide updated information on the impact of the measures adopted to promote the full, productive and sustainable employment of persons with disabilities, including employment and vocational rehabilitation programmes and active labour market policy measures focussing on promoting the employment of persons with disabilities in the open labour market. Please also continue to provide information on the content and outcome of the consultations held with employers’ and workers’ organizations and representative organizations of and for persons with disabilities on the matters covered by the Convention. It further requests the Government to provide statistics and relevant data, as much as possible, disaggregated by age, gender and nature of the disability, as well as extracts of reports, studies and inquiries concerning the matters covered by the Convention.

Article 8. Services in rural areas and remote communities. The Committee notes from the report that about two out of three persons with disabilities in China live in rural areas, a considerable part of whom are living in poverty. The Outline of Development-oriented Poverty Reduction for Persons with Disabilities in Rural Areas (2011–20) stipulates that persons with disabilities in rural areas should be fully supported to engage in planting, animal farming and domestic handicraft industry as a means to overcome poverty. The Government adds that, in 2014, persons with disabilities in need generally received rehabilitation services in cities and rural areas that are located in more developed areas. Rehabilitation services in underdeveloped rural areas reached more than 70 per cent. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the vocational rehabilitation and employment services provided for persons with disabilities in rural areas and remote communities, and their impact on access to and retention in sustainable employment for persons with disabilities in rural areas and remote communities.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

The Committee notes the detailed and comprehensive report submitted by the Government for the period ending in May 2010. The Government refers to the Programme of Developing Undertakings for Disabled Persons in China under the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006–10) and its schemes implementing measures for rehabilitation, employment and social security of people with disabilities. Eighty-three million persons are covered by the above programme and schemes, approximately 75 per cent of them living in rural areas. The Committee also notes the comments supplied by the All China Federation of Trade Unions in the report indicating that unions in China have done a lot of substantive and effective work in promoting employment of people with disabilities. The Committee invites the Government to supply in its next report an assessment of the measures implemented under the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006–10) and their impact on the integration of people with disabilities in the open labour market giving details on the situation for those in rural and poorer areas (Articles 2, 7 and 8 of the Convention). It also invites the Government to include in its next report with decisions taken by the courts and other authorities in ensuring the effective equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women workers with disabilities and other workers (Article 4 and Part IV of the report form). In addition, the Committee would welcome statistics and relevant data, as much as possible, disaggregated by age, gender and nature of the disability; extracts of reports, studies and inquiries concerning the matters covered by the Convention (Part V of the report form).

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1994, published 81st ILC session (1994)

1. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in reply to it earlier comments. It notes with interest, in particular, information supplied under Articles 3, 7 and 8 of the Convention concerning a pilot programme applying the policy of scattered employment of disabled persons and other measures with a view to promote employment opportunities of this category of workers in the open labour market, as well as information concerning the development of various services for disabled persons, including those in the rural areas. The Committee also notes statistical information provided in accordance with point V of the report form. It would be grateful if the Government would continue to supply information on the development of those measures and communicate a copy of the Law on Protection of Disabled Persons, referred to in the Government's 1993 reports.

2. The Committee observes that the Government's reports received in May and November 1993 do not contain information requested by the Committee under Articles 5 and 9. It therefore recalls that in its previous direct request under these Articles it asked the Government:

(i) to describe in more detail the manner in which representative employers' and workers' organizations are consulted on the matters referred to in Article 5, and

(ii) to supply further information on measures taken to ensure the availability of suitably qualified staff responsible for the vocational guidance, vocational training, placement and employment of disabled persons (Article 9).

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1993, published 80th ILC session (1993)

The Committee notes that the Government's report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

The Committee has noted with interest the information supplied by the Government in its first report on the application of the Convention. It would be grateful if in its next report the Government would supply additional information on the following points:

Article 3 of the Convention. It appears from the report that the main role in providing employment is to be played by welfare factories. Please describe more specifically the manner in which employment opportunities for disabled persons are promoted in the "open labour market", according to the terms of those provisions of the Convention. Please refer in particular to the so-called "dispersed employment policies".

Article 5. The Government indicates in its report that there are consultations with employers' and workers' organizations on the implementation of the national policy for disabled persons. Please describe in more detail the manner in which representative employers' and workers' organizations are consulted on the matters referred to in this Article.

Article 7. Please describe measures taken with a view to providing and evaluating vocational guidance, placement, employment and other related services for disabled persons. Please indicate whether existing services for workers generally are used, with necessary adaptations, to enable disabled persons to secure, retain and advance in employment.

Article 8. The Government indicates, with reference to paragraph 38 of the Five-Year Work Programme for the Disabled (1988-1992), that in rural areas a variety of assistance should be offered to disabled persons so that they may engage in farming, handicraft industries etc., and that welfare enterprises in rural areas have been developing, while disabled people in remote mountain, forestry and other areas can also be employed properly. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would describe in more detail measures taken and implemented to promote the establishment and development of vocational rehabilitation and employment services for disabled persons in rural areas and remote communities in accordance with this Article.

Article 9. The Government states, with reference to the Five-Year Work Programme for the Disabled (paragraph 49), that it is important to train personnel competent for rehabilitation work and for the teaching of rehabilitation knowledge. It indicates that 20 vocational training centres have been established to train staff in vocational rehabilitation. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would supply, in its next report, further information on measures taken to ensure the availability of suitably qualified staff responsible for the vocational guidance, vocational training, placement and employment of disabled persons.

Please also provide information on practical application of the Convention requested under point V of the report form.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1992, published 79th ILC session (1992)

The Committee has noted with interest the information supplied by the Government in its first report on the application of the Convention. It would be grateful if in its next report the Government would supply additional information on the following points:

Article 3 of the Convention. It appears from the report that the main role in providing employment is to be played by welfare factories. Please describe more specifically the manner in which employment opportunities for disabled persons are promoted in the "open labour market", according to the terms of those provisions of the Convention. Please refer in particular to the so-called "dispersed employment policies".

Article 5. The Government indicates in its report that there are consultations with employers' and workers' organisations on the implementation of the national policy for disabled persons. Please describe in more detail the manner in which representative employers' and workers' organisations are consulted on the matters referred to in this Article.

Article 7. Please describe measures taken with a view to providing and evaluating vocational guidance, placement, employment and other related services for disabled persons. Please indicate whether existing services for workers generally are used, with necessary adaptations, to enable disabled persons to secure, retain and advance in employment.

Article 8. The Government indicates, with reference to paragraph 38 of the Five-Year Work Programme for the Disabled (1988-1992), that in rural areas a variety of assistance should be offered to disabled persons so that they may engage in farming, handicraft industries etc., and that welfare enterprises in rural areas have been developing, while disabled people in remote mountain, forestry and other areas can also be employed properly. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would describe in more detail measures taken and implemented to promote the establishment and development of vocational rehabilitation and employment services for disabled persons in rural areas and remote communities in accordance with this Article.

Article 9. The Government states, with reference to the Five-Year Work Programme for the Disabled (paragraph 49), that it is important to train personnel competent for rehabilitation work and for the teaching of rehabilitation knowledge. It indicates that 20 vocational training centres have been established to train staff in vocational rehabilitation. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would supply, in its next report, further information on measures taken to ensure the availability of suitably qualified staff responsible for the vocational guidance, vocational training, placement and employment of disabled persons.

Please also provide information on practical application of the Convention requested under Point V of the Report Form.