Employment of People with Disability and Employers' Practice of Disability Act A Case of Moshi District Plantations in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

Abstract

The study based on assessing four basic concepts which are the extent of employers' knowledge of the disability act of 2010 in relation to employment, the knowledge of the implications of not abiding by the disability act, challenges faced by employers in employing people with disability and what should be done to raise the rate of employment for these people. A total of 139 respondents were used and were obtained from five plantations in Moshi District. It also used three key informants, one labour officer and two respondents from NGOs. The study used key informant interviews, documentary reviews and a questionnaire-based survey. It was found that most respondents just had an idea of what the act says but they did not know it in details. None of the respondents' offices had ever been sued for not abiding by these laws. It was also observed that poor infrastructure, low education levels, self-stigma, high costs, lack of knowledge and poor advertisements were the main factors that result to low employment rates for P WD. In conclusion, as the study was based on the bona fide occupational qualification, the PWD were employed in low rates not because they did not qualify but because of other factors that have nothing to do with their qualification but have something to do with the costs, working environment and authorities in place. Hence, the researcher recommends that awareness be spread to both employers and PWD, opening of government offices dealing with PWD in every region in the country, improve infrastructure and lastly improve learning environment for PWD.