The right of persons with disabilities to social protection 2015, para. 52
Paragraph- Paragraph text
- Disability benefits are fundamental for promoting the inclusion and active participation of persons with disabilities; however, if wrongly conceived, they could create disincentives for such participation. When disability benefits bundle assistance to cover disability-related extra costs or access to health care together with income support aimed at reducing poverty, persons with disabilities may lose the entire benefit package if they gain a higher income than the poverty line or minimum income threshold. This places persons with disabilities at a crossroads, where they must choose between securing a minimum but stable income, and seeking employment and further socioeconomic participation and contribution; the latter option bearing the risk of job insecurity or insufficient income to cover all expenses. Therefore, if not well designed, these benefits can in themselves become a "benefit trap" that leads to low labour force participation. This problem is further compounded when the disability benefits are linked to a precondition of being "unable to work" (as opposed to having a low income or a reduced earnings potential) as part of the eligibility criteria, which not only reinforces stereotyping of persons with disabilities, but also perpetuates their dependency on the benefits by eliminating any expectation of their entering the labour market.
- Legal status
- Non-negotiated soft law
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Other
- Reference
- SR Disability, Report to the UNGA (2015), A/70/297, para. 52.
- Paragraph number
- 52
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