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Press: EU in the lives of disabled citizens

• An increasing number of European cities offer accessible public transport to persons with reduced mobility, contributing to their autonomy and mobility;
• Employers must apply recruitment procedures on the basis of equal opportunities and offer to adapt the workplace to meet the needs of the disabled person;
• A disabled person can start a legal complaint procedure after he/she found himself/herself discriminated by his/her employer while applying to a job or for a training;
• An increasing number of public websites are accessible to persons with disabilities;
• An increasing number of lifts are designed to meet accessibility standards;
• An increasing number of information and communication technology products and services such as mobile phones, computer hardware and software,… are now accessible to blind and partially sighted persons;
• Euro coins and banknotes are the most accessible currency ever in Europe for visually impaired persons;
• An increasing number of medicines are sold with informative labelling in Braille;
• Persons with disabilities are entitled to benefit from a full quality assistance service when travelling by air from airport of departure to airport of arrival;
• Initiated by EDF, the European Year of Persons with Disabilities in 2003, created the opportunity to raise awareness about disability from the European to local level and many governmental and legislative initiatives have been put in place in various EU countries;
• When awarding public contracts for products or services, public authorities must take into consideration accessibility requirements for persons with disabilities;
• 35 % of EU funding for regional and local areas must respect the principles of non-discrimination and full accessibility for disabled persons.
• The International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, strongly promoted by the European Disability Forum, and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2006, is the first legally binding international instrument applicable on the European Union and its member states.