Only 5% of persons with a disability in Malta are employed, Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said this evening.

Speaking during the debate on the Bill to Amend the Act on the Employment of Persons with Disabilities, Mr Bartolo said only 1,450 disabled persons are employed, while another 550 are looking for a job. However there are 30,000 persons with a disability in Malta. 20,000 are of working age. The 18,000 who are unable to find work are being emarginated and cast aside, the Minister said.

Mr Bartolo said the number of working disabled persons decreased from 1,472 in 2004 to 1,247 in 2012. 900 out of 1,300 employers did not employ persons with disability despite the fact that disabled persons are supposed to make up 2% of their workforce. The law, introduced in 1969, was drafted with good intentions but many employers chose not to follow the law.

When these amendments are introduced, employers who do not follow this rule will have to pay a contribution of €2,400 for every disabled person that they are supposed to employ, up to a total of €10,000. The money will be used to provide training and job opportunities for disabled people.

Employers will initially be asked to pay a third of the contribution, two thirds in 2016 and the full amount in 2017.