Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Sheltered workshops and economy

1980; Wiley; Volume: 62; Issue: S285 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/j.1600-0447.1980.tb07702.x

1600-0447

M Bille, Aa. Salling‐Poulsen, Th. Videbech,

Health disparities and outcomes

The study concerns the sheltered workshops in Randers, a town with 65,000 inhabitants, 35 km north of Aarhus, Denmark. The purpose of the investigation is to review the patients attending the sheltered workshops in Randers, to investigate the extent to which patients, who had been without employment, could become productive again with the help of sheltered workshops, and to review the social economical funtion of these workshops. The problem is of interest on account of the great number of persons pensioned at an early age. A description is given of the privately owned institution for rehabilitation in Randers. The present Danish legislation regarding sheltered workshops is reviewed. There is no quota arrangement in Denmark which requires employers to engage disabled persons. It is shown that the three sheltered workshops in the privately owned institution for rehabilitation in Randers receive very moderate subsidies from public funds compared with their turnover and that the machine factory “Viva” is run with a social profit. The 45 persons who were employed on January 7,1976 in the three sheltered workshops of the privately owned institution for rehabilitation are described socially and medically by means of tables. It is shown that disablement is a relative expression. It is concluded that sheltered workshops are reasonable and sensible establishments which should be extended for the sake of handicapped and for the society as a whole. Even if quota arrangements are made, there will always be persons whose handicap is so pronounced that they will only be able to work in sheltered workshops.