In accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People, the IB considers participation in professional life as a human right and supports the inclusion of people with psychological, physical and/or mental disability as a significant measure to implement this convention. More than 160 countries, including the EU, the US, Brazil and Angola, have already ratified the Convention on the Rights of Disabled People adopted by the UN in 2006 and therefore committed to its implementation.
Vocational rehabilitation offers people who cannot enter professional life because of an emotional or physical disability or who have pulled out of professional life because of significant psychological disorders the perfect chance for entry or re-entry into professional life. The IB promotes inclusion by considering the special strengths and opportunities of people with physical and mental disabilities in its offers of vocational rehabilitation.
In accordance with our mission statement, the goal of vocational rehabilitation is to help people to develop freely, live self-determined lives, integrate into society, take personal responsibility and actively participate in the development of society. The IB’s employees facilitate the entry into professional life for our clients with targeted psychological and socio-pedagogical guidance. They find out which special education or rehabilitation measures will best suit these clients.
The Rehabilitation Vocational Preparation is an offer for young people below the age of 25, who have completed their compulsory education but are not yet ready for a vocational training. The type of school leaving qualification/certificate is irrelevant for this preparation course. The Rehabilitation Vocational Preparation is directed towards young people with disabilities and has the specific pedagogical guidance and support of rehabilitation specialists. It mainly serves as a vocational orientation and offers young people the possibility to make practical vocational experiences which facilitate vocational choices. Within the scope of the vocational preparation the young people go through a suitability analysis, if required, to assess their strengths and developmental opportunities realistically. At the basic level they get to know different professional areas, in the assessment stage they acquire or they are prepared for a specific vocational training with access qualifications. The vocational preparation takes place in the workshops and premises of the IB.
Young people, who cannot take part in regular vocational training in a full-time job because of their disability or physical impairment, can complete a shortened training in the facilities of the IB in cooperation with a vocational institution. Compared to the full-time vocational training this shortened vocational training has a greater practical than theoretical part and the duration of the whole training is shorter in most cases. In the cooperative model, the young people agree on a contract of apprenticeship with the educational institution (e.g. the IB), but work for the most part in a normal company. The IB supports the youth with remedial teaching or special pedagogical offers of care during their vocational training. In the integrative model, the apprentices agree their educational contract with the IB with the difference that all training takes place in the facilities of the IB. In order to enable a smoother transition into the labour market the young people spend a minimum of 40 up to a maximum of 120 days per year of training in a company. The companies are selected together by the pedagogical employees of the IB and the apprentice. During the vocational training the apprentices receive a monetary compensation. Additionally a vocational training allowance can be requested.
The Employability Diagnosis for People with Special Needs (DIA-AM) is used to check and compile a testimonial about the eligibility of people with psychological, physical or mental impairments for the regular labour market. Pedagogical staff and psychologists check the capacity and the ability to work under pressure, the suitability of a workplace for people with disabilities or the opportunity for integration in the first labour market together with the client. The method is aimed primarily at people with learning disabilities, mental disabilities or a sustainable mental disorder.
Supported employment is an offer that can be complementary to a DIA-AM diagnosis, but can also be implemented on its own. If it is recognised that a young person or an adult is too weak for a vocational training because of his or her impairment, but there is no necessity for sheltered workshop employment, supported employment can be a solution. Supported employment describes the individualised, company qualification, incorporation and support of people with disabilities and special needs within companies of the general labour market. The aim of this offer is to provide the customer with a perspective for work participation and, at best, with a socially insured employment.
