Assemblyman Jo O-seop Proposes Bill for Gradual Increase of Mandatory Employment Rate for Disabled Persons

Amendment to the Paid Road Act for Toll Discounts on Vehicles with 6 or More Seats Owned by Persons with Disabilities

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Assemblyman Jo O-seop (The Democratic Party of Korea, Gwangju Buk-gu Gap) announced on the 19th that he has proposed a revision to the “Act on the Promotion of Employment and Vocational Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons” to gradually increase the mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities.

Assemblyman Jo stated, “As of May last year, the economic activity participation rate of persons with disabilities aged 15 and over was only 37.3%, and the employment rate was just 34.9%,” adding, “The proposed revision to the ‘Act on the Promotion of Employment and Vocational Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons’ includes raising the current mandatory employment rate for persons with disabilities from 3.4% to 3.8% over four years from 2021 to 2024.”

Along with this, he also proposed a revision to the “Toll Road Act” to include vehicles with six or more seats owned by persons with disabilities as eligible for toll fee reductions.

The revision to the “Toll Road Act” mainly reflects the reality that the purchase of six-seat vehicles by persons with disabilities is increasing due to reasons such as wheelchair accommodation, and includes six-seat vehicles owned by persons with disabilities in the toll fee reduction targets.

Under the current law, toll fee reductions apply only to passenger cars with “7 to 10 seats” owned by persons with disabilities, independence patriots, national merit recipients, or their household members.

Assemblyman Jo said, “With the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, the employment issues of persons with disabilities, who are a vulnerable labor group compared to non-disabled persons, are becoming more serious,” and added, “We must take action to activate employment of persons with disabilities and solve unemployment issues starting from the public sector to protect their minimum economic survival rights.”

He continued, “It is important to speed up legislation so that laws do not fall behind the rapidly changing reality,” emphasizing, “I will always listen to the quiet voices and strive to eliminate welfare blind spots that are not easily seen.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.