Editing Vocational education (section)

=== Promoting social equity and inclusive workplaces ===
Preparing marginalized groups of youths and adults in 
with the right skills and helping them make the transition from school to work is part of the problem faced by TVET in promoting social equity. Ensuring that the workplace is inclusive poses numerous policy challenges, depending on the contextual dynamics of inclusion and exclusion, and the capabilities of individuals. For example, the experiences of exclusion by people with [[Disability|disabilities]] and disadvantaged women may be similar in some ways and different in others. Many individuals experience multiple forms of disadvantage in the workplace, to different degrees of severity, depending on social attitudes and traditions in a specific context or organization. Approaches to inclusiveness in the workplace will therefore vary according to population needs, social diversity and context. To give one example, the Netherlands set about the task of making workplaces more inclusive for low-skilled adults by offering programmes that combine language instruction with work, and in certain cases on-the-job training.<ref>OECD. 2012. ''Better Skills Better Jobs Better Lives – OECD: A Strategic Approach to Skills Policies''. Paris, OECD Publishing. http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/better-skills-better-jobs- better-lives_9789264177338-en</ref><ref name=":1" />

A review of employer surveys in [[Australia]], the [[Netherlands]], the [[United Kingdom]] and the [[United States|United States of America]], reported that employers valued people with disabilities for their high levels of motivation and their diverse perspectives, and found their attendance records to be the same or better than those of other employees.<ref>Employers’ Forum on Disability. 2009. What does the research say are the commercial bene ts? http://www.realising-potential.org/six-building-blocks/commercial/what-researchers- say.html&nbsp;</ref> Many employers mentioned that being seen as pro-inclusion was positive for the company or organization's image, an advantage that goes well beyond&nbsp;providing employment opportunities to disadvantaged groups. In many cases, however, social and cultural perceptions are an obstacle to making workplaces more inclusive, and this will require sensitive and concerted attention. Some low- and middle-income countries have sought to address this through legislation. In [[Tanzania]] the [[Disabled Persons (Employment) Act of 1982]] established a quota system that stipulates that 2 per cent of the workforce in companies with over fifty employees must be persons with disabilities.<ref>SADC and UNESCO. 2011. ''Final Report: Status of TVET in the SADC Region''. Gaborone, SADC, p. 10.</ref><ref name=":1" />

The 2012 [[Education for All Global Monitoring Report]] concluded that 'all countries, regardless of income level, need to pay greater attention to the needs of young people who face disadvantage in education and skills development by virtue of their poverty, gender or other characteristics'.<ref name=":02">UNESCO. 2012. ''Youth and Skills: Putting Education to Work''. EFA Global Monitoring Report. Paris, UNESCO. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0021/002180/218003e.pdf</ref> The report found that several barriers and constraints reduced the success of TVET in meeting social equity demands. First, national TVET policies in most cases failed to address the skills needs of young people living in urban poverty and in deprived rural areas. Second, additional funds were needed to support TVET learning opportunities on a much larger scale. Third, the training needs of disadvantaged young women were particularly neglected. The 2012 EFA Global Monitoring Report also noted that skills training alone was not sufficient for the most disadvantaged of the rural and urban poor.<ref name=":02" /> Coherent policies that link social protection, micro-finance and TVET are considered critical for ensuring better outcomes for marginalized groups.<ref name=":1" />