translated from Spanish: The remaining inclusive challenges by 2021

Due to the pandemic this year has slowed the development of inclusivity in the country. Although significant progress has been made in recent times, such as the enactment of Labor Inclusion Act 21,015, which has stopping discrimination at work in both the public and private worlds, huge challenges remain by 2021. 
One of the main debts is the incorporation of persons with disabilities in companies and public bodies, which if they have 100 or more workers must hire at least 1% with disabilities. According to Andrea Zondek, president of the Tacal Foundation, there is a sense that many companies have not complied with this law even though we are close to December 31, when companies should have fulfilled the quota or, if not, use one of the alternative measures.
“Apparently there are many companies that due to the pandemic were unable to meet the quota set at 1%. We are at least in touch with many institutions that are concerned about how to comply with the law despite the difficult year that was experienced,” he said.
Another important point on this issue is that certification of inclusion experts is expected to be in force by mid-2021. That is, each company must have an expert on the subject in its human resources departments and for this, the person in charge must have a certification. This can be obtained through Evaluation and Certification Centers of the new profiles required by the Inclusion Act. 
New Constitution
With regard to the creation of the new Constitution, it was long ago approved that lists should have at least 1% of people with disabilities. However, this is an issue that is not yet fully resolved, because, despite the initiative, it does not ensure the participation of people with disabilities in the construction of the new Magna Carta.
That is why Pablo Selles, candidate for the Constituent Convention and creator of The Own Voice emphasized that “even though a minimum floor was achieved, people with disabilities have to be protagonists and actors in the construction of Constitution and in the thematic installation around it. We don’t just have to be filler candidates.”
In addition, he added that other outstanding issues for 2021 were to advance mechanisms that would help to reduce the gender gap in the workplace because – currently – only 35% of women are active at work, the academic certification of people with disabilities is another important issue, as many people cannot move forward in terms of development because they have not completed traditional education and , finally, decentralize inclusion to regions in the area of incorporating the disabled into enterprises.
However, the changes expected for the future are not only institutional, but also cultural. Andrea Zondek said it is an urgent need to make a cultural change in Chile, as it is not enough to meet the quota.
For his part, Selles emphasized that, today, people with disabilities are unvisitable persons or are seen as subjects of harm, so it must be understood that “persons with disabilities are subject to rights and are subjects that we are permanently present. We have to understand that we are in everyday life, we are subjects who partner, we think, we have an opinion regarding what is happening in the world.” 

Original source in Spanish

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