Sahaviriya Steel Group responded to the project on employment of the persons with disabilities on social aspect pursuant to Section 35 (of the Persons with Disabilities Empowerment Act, BE 2550) in type of hire employment service, of the Department of Employment, Ministry of Labor, by employing 26 persons with disabilities under such project. Works employed included supporting works in the public interest service centers in community areas closed to their houses, such as, sub-district health promoting hospital, child center/school, career rehabilitation center for the person with disabilities, service center for the person with disabilities of the municipality and the sub-district administration organization throughout the country. Objectives of this project are to create employment opportunity for the persons with disabilities so they can have income to support their family, to rely on themselves, as well as to lift up quality of life and reduce social inequality.
In addition, SSI Group also supported employment of 5 persons with disabilities pursuant to Section 33 in positions suitable for their knowledge and capabilities. All of them, who are fairly and equally treated, are now working in Bangsaphan Steel Plant, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province.
Persons with Disabilities Empowerment Act, BE 2550 and its amendment specified that the establishment with more than 100 employees is obligated to employ the person with disabilities at the ratio of 100:1. If any establishment does not employ the person with disabilities for work, it must remit money to the “Fund for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities” at the ratio of 114,245 Baht per year per a number of person with disabilities that it does not employ. The Fund will further use such money to support and develop quality of life of the person with disabilities. However, COVID-19 pandemic situations impacted people in wider areas covering all groups and ages, including the vulnerable groups and the disabled person groups, thus, in order to help the person with disabilities to have work and income to support themselves and their families, the establishments are encouraged to select other employment methods under the law for them by means of sub-contracts with the state agencies. This is one of the activities under Section 35 which is enable the persons with disabilities to have income right away, to be able to have work and to be directly employed.