Institutions for persons with disabilities 2.4 Institutions and facilities for persons with disabilities 2.4.1 Introduction In 2019 the NPM visited 104 institutions and facilities for persons with disabilities; 101 of these monitoring visits were unannounced. It was evident from the visits that the risk of violence, exploitation and abuse is partly attributable to processes and inadvertency that endanger human rights and partly to a lack of resources in the institutions and facilities. Many of the problems identified could be solved if a policy were enacted that stipulates nationwide collaboration between the Federal Government and the Laender and takes the rights of persons with disabilities in line with the UNCRC into consideration. Every year, complaints are lodged about insurmountable barriers regarding access to the employment market. These are often from persons with learning impairments themselves who are medically disqualified as incapacitated for work shortly after completing compulsory education without taking their available potential into consideration. As a consequence, they are forced to spend the rest of their lives on the minimum subsistence level of social welfare benefits. In 2018 the labour force participation rate of persons of working age with disabilities was, at 58.5%, considerably lower than that of those in the same age group without disabilities (77.8%). As no improvements can be expected, the AOB published a special report in November 2019 entitled “No chance of employment – the reality of persons with disabilities” (“Keine Chance auf Arbeit – Die Realität von Menschen mit Behinderung”). The report summarises the complaints of the past seven years from both, the area of ex-post control as well as the findings from nationwide visits by the NPM commissions to occupational therapy workshops. Special report „No chance of employment“ The exclusion of some 22,000 persons with disabilities in sheltered workshops from the support through the Public Employment Service Austria (Arbeitsmarktservice) for establishing an employer-employee relationship as well as from legal health and pension insurance, which is based purely on medical criteria, is a violation of human-rights obligations to which Austria has committed. Three basic problem areas above all can be identified: 1. The employment market is not inclusive. 2. Persons with disabilities do not have full independent social insurance despite being employed in workshops. 3. Persons with disabilities in workshops do not receive adequate remuneration but rather a mere pocket money of EUR 5 to – in very rare cases – EUR 200 per month. Three problem areas As a solution to these problems, the NPM recommended amending legal regulations and structures in a way that the determination of incapacity for work according to medical criteria is discontinued and the Public Employment Service Austria shall ensure that persons with disabilities have the opportunity Recommendations 88