Between 2010 and 2020, the number of disabled people with formal employment bonds in the state of São Paulo increased from 96,200 to 148,00 — a 54.6% rise. Despite these advances, 83.7% of companies in the state do not comply with Law no. 8.213/91, which provides that companies with 100 or more employees must reserve some of their vacancies for that section of society. The findings are part of a study by researchers from the Institute of Economy at the University of Campinas (IE-UNICAMP), conducted since 2021 with funding from the Labor Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPT). Access to the workplace is one of multiple issues for disabled people being studied across different areas of knowledge.
In 2021, the state had on record 11,800 companies obliged to reserve vacancies for this group of people. Of all these companies, only 1,800 complied with the quotas stipulated by the law—15.9% of the total. “The percentage recorded in São Paulo is lower than the average for Brazil, where 23.6% of corporations meet the legislation requirements,” compares economist Guirlanda Maria Maia de Castro Benevides, of IE-UNICAMP and one of the study authors. The researcher points out that since 2010, the number of disabled people employed has reached an average growth rate of 5.1% per year. In her opinion this movement results primarily from the existence of legislation ensuring formal employment for this group. “However, we still have a ways to go in terms of complying with the Law of Quotas,” she emphasizes.
Pursuant to Article 93 of the law, the percentage of vacancy reservations varies in accordance with the size of the corporation. Companies with 100 to 200 employees are obligated to include a total of 2% employees with disabilities in their staff, while for organizations with 201 to 500 workers, this percentage rises to 3%. Establishments with 501 to 1,000 professionals must fulfil the minimum level of 4%, and for those with over 1,000, the number increases to 5%.
Between 2003 and 2015, Benevides coordinated the Program for Employment Inclusion in Campinas, run by the Brazilian Ministry of Labor and Employment (MTE). “One of the claims we were hearing frequently from organizations that were defaulting on this legislation is that the quotas were not being completely filled because there were insufficient disabled professionals available in the market,” reports the researcher. With an end to exploring this question, the UNICAMP study demonstrated that in 2021 São Paulo had some 1.8 million people with disabilities in the 16 – 64 age group potentially fit for the employment market. Considering all the companies in the state, the number of vacancies for people with disabilities totaled 327,500, with less than half (45.4%) filled that year — 148,800 job posts. “Generally speaking, the companies were hiring but did not achieve the minimum percentage set by the law,” explains Benevides.
Average annual growth rate of disabled people employed is the result of legislation ensuring formal employment
The UNICAMP study also found that vacancies filled in São Paulo in 2022 were chiefly in the services sector, followed by industry and trade. Most of the employees had completed high school (52.5%) or higher education (19.9%). People with physical disabilities registered 75,800 formal employment bonds in 2022, or 45.6% of the total, while the equivalent value for those with hearing impairment was 19%. Participation was lower among people with mental and intellectual challenges — 14.2%, or 23,500 employment bonds.
Between 2010 and 2020, formal employment bonds increased across all age groups except for 16–24, which saw a drop of 12% (see graph). “The downturn in the economic growth rate in Brazil and the health crisis caused by COVID-19 impacted the employment market as a whole, more significantly affecting young people, particularly those with disabilities,” says economist Jacqueline Aslan Souen, of IE-UNICAMP, who also took part in the research. According to the survey, white disabled workers filled 59.6% of formal vacancies. Brown-skinned people came second (26.2%), followed by Black workers (6.9%). The study was conducted based on the cross-referencing of data available in the Labor and Employment Ministry’s Annual Social Information Report (RAIS-MTE) and in home surveys conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
Economist Alexandre Gori Maia, coordinator of the IE-UNICAMP research, explains that in Brazil a third of disabled people of active age are in the employment market. He goes on to say that this proportion is higher in developed countries across Europe and the United States, as nations roll out social assistance and benefits policies. Gori considers the difficulties in accessing the employment market and the low salaries as significant barriers for the professional development of people with disabilities. “These individuals end up taking vacancies with modest remuneration, and many work in the informal market,” says the Economist. In this respect, Souen states that, after observing the formal market in São Paulo State, the research also showed that most of these individuals (60.1%) receive an average nominal monthly salary of around 1.8 times the national minimum salary, and key occupations for this workforce include clerk, salesperson, and attendant.
The difficulties faced by disabled people in their quest for independence — including financial — have been the object of analysis by educator Annie Redig, of the School of Education at Rio de Janeiro State University (FE-UERJ), over the last 10 years. “Many students with this profile finish their basic education without any prospects for future projects. Others, when they begin working, do not receive the necessary assistance to remain and develop in the role,” affirms the educator, a member of the University’s Educational and Social Inclusion Research Group.
To help disabled people become more independent, Redig developed a protocol with integrated strategies and actions to guide the transition between school and the workplace. Family members and school administrators used questionnaires and conversations with the individuals involved to gain awareness of their skills and difficulties. The protocol also enables identification of their aims and allows them to organize the steps to be taken to achieve their professional goals. “If a disabled student wishes to study at degree level, they need support in formulating a study plan to pass the entrance exam, while those wishing to start work need help mapping the companies that may employ them, for example,” concludes the educator.
Scientific article
MAIA, A. G. & GARCIA, V. G. Labor market impacts of employment quotas for the disabled in Brazil. Economia Aplicada, Vol. 23, no. 2. 2019.
Book
BENEVIDES, G. M. M. C. (Ed.). Pessoa com deficiência e trabalho – Estudos para o estado de São Paulo e um breve panorama nacional e internacional. Curitiba: Editora CRV, 2022.
Document
REDIG, A. G. Documento norteador para implementação do Plano Individualizado de Transição – Primeiros passos. Ponta Grossa: Atena Editora, 2024.
