Access to and Maintenance of Employment and Mental Health

Abstract

Work is a matter of interest for people with mental health problems in relation to their integration and normalization. Individuals with mental health problems can obtain the status of persons with disabilities affected by special difficulties. In practice, this group has very low activity rates. In addition, the refusal of people with mental health problems to accede to the status of a person with disability makes it convenient to take into consideration a social—that is, flexible—notion of disability. In terms of access to employment, supported employment and job adaptations are particularly important. In the field of access, it would be necessary to regulate equality plans for reasons of disability to achieve greater efficiency in the integration of people with disabilities in the open labour market. Maintaining the employment of people with acquired mental health problems is also important. To do so, measures to protect vulnerable health workers and to regulate return to work plans are crucial in this respect.