The Participation Service Point is set up as an HR expertise point to provide advice and support in the recruitment and guidance of colleagues with occupational disabilities. At both faculties and departments, opportunities are being created to offer challenging jobs and a safe working environment to people with disabilities who fall under the Jobs Agreement.
Legal quota
In April 2013, the social partners and the government agreed to create 125,000 additional jobs for people with occupational disabilities, of which 100,000 jobs within the market sector and 25,000 jobs within the public sector. As a university, VU Amsterdam is part of the public sector in this context. At the level of Universities of the Netherlands (formerly VSNU), agreements are made on the universities' contribution to the national jobs agreement. Universities of the Netherlands drew up the Job Agreement Working Agenda 2019-2026, which states that the starting point is no longer the job agreement but the legal quota.
Goal VU Amsterdam
Based on the legal quota, VU Amsterdam aims to have ultimately created 163 jobs by 2026 for people with labour disabilities. Creating jobs for the target group is a joint responsibility of all parts of VU Amsterdam (departments and faculties).
Conditions
A whole FTE is 25.5 hours according to the Participation Act. If an employee works more or fewer hours, this counts proportionally. An employee can therefore also fill more than 1 FTE/more than 1 participation job. Example: an employee works 30 hours a week; 30/25.5 = 1.18 FTE.
There is no condition on the size of the position to count towards the Quota Act.
However, to be eligible for facilities such as job coaching, wage subsidy or wage dispensation, there are conditions on the duration and scope of the employment contract. To qualify for facilities, an employment contract must have a duration of at least 6 months and a scope of at least 12 hours per week.
Target group
Who counts for the jobs agreement and legal quota?
- People with an occupational disability who apply to the municipality for work support and who, in the opinion of UWV, are unable to earn the minimum wage independently (these are the people covered by the Participation Act).
- (Former) pupils from secondary special education (VSO) or practical education (pro) who have applied in writing to the UWV.
- People with a Social Employment Act indication (Wsw).
- People in the Wajong (also higher educated), unless it is established after the reassessment that the Wajonger is fully and permanently occupationally disabled.
- People under the Act on Employment of Job Seekers (Wiw-job) or under the entry-level and transfer jobs decree (ID-job).
- People with a medical disability that developed before their 18th birthday or during their studies, who cannot earn the minimum wage without a facility, but can with a facility.
Point of attention: people who are reinstated from the Act on Work and Income according to Labour Capacity (WIA) do not count towards the jobs agreement.