Three different employment statuses are captured by the terminology: “for pay” captures any person who performed some work for wage or salary, in cash or in kind (wage and salaried workers); “for profit” aims to include workers who are self-employed; and “for family gain” allows for the inclusion of contributing family workers who worked in a family establishment or landholding. A young person is considered to be employed if they fit this definition and are of “youth age” (the age definition of a young person changes being country-dependent). The employment rate is straightforward to calculate: divide the number of employed persons by the total number of persons of working age (or in the case of youth employment by the number of young people in a given age range, for example 15 to 24 years of age).

With the aim of providing vocational training and generating jobs for 250,000 people with disabilities by 2015, the Vietnamese Government has been improving its legal system relating to the issue.

The country also signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability in 20007 and is expected to ratify it this year.

Besides receiving social and legal support, disabled people in Vietnam have gained better access to infrastructure in transport, culture, sports and information technology.
In the time ahead, the Ministry of Labour - Invalids and Social Affairs will continue programmes to raise people’s awareness of the disabled, and intensify activities to help them better integrate into the community.

On the occasion of Vietnam Day of people with disabilities, a job fair integrating the recruitment of disabled workers was held.

There were 32 businesses in Hanoi participating in the event, including 11 businesses recruiting disabled workers.

Some businesses recruit many positions with attractive salaries such as sales-marketing, garment workers, handicraft workers, technical staff, and electronic technology...

This is a favorable condition for unemployed workers, as well as disabled workers looking for jobs that suit their abilities and aspirations.

The total recruitment and enrollment needs at this special job session are 1,117 targets, with 386 recruitment and enrollment targets reserved for people with disabilities.

Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Labour - Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen Tay Nam said that Hanoi currently has 112,171 people with disabilities, including 7,704 people with disabilities able to work.

Therefore, supporting employment for people with disabilities is a task of profound humane significance.

In America, social pensions are a critical element of the right to social security for older persons whose human rights enjoyment is endangered without an adequate social pension. Older women are especially at risk. They live longer, and the unpaid care work they perform throughout their life obstructs their ability to access formal employment and therefore contributory social security or decent wages. Social and economic policies should correct this imbalance by promoting equality between women and men instead of deepening the gap. Childcare, for example, should be guaranteed as a social protection measure. The level of benefits for social pensions must ensure an adequate standard of living.

Social protection is key for persons with disabilities to gain independence from families, boost their social participation and support their ability to live with dignity. It can enhance the productivity, employability and economic development of persons with disabilities, and therefore contribute to their income security.