One in Three Public Institutions Fails to Meet Mandatory Purchase of Products Made by Disabled Persons

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Last year, one out of three public institutions failed to meet the mandatory purchase quota for products from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities.

According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 26th, among 848 public institutions last year, 560 institutions (66%) achieved the target purchase ratio for products from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities as stipulated by the Act on Employment of Persons with Disabilities. This means that 34%, or about one in three institutions, fell short of the target.

The Act on Employment of Persons with Disabilities requires public institutions to purchase a certain percentage of their procurement amount from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities. Standard workplaces for persons with disabilities refer to government-certified workplaces that meet certain criteria, such as employing a majority of persons with disabilities.

The number of public institutions that fulfilled the mandatory purchase of products from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities decreased by 69 compared to the previous year. The Ministry of Employment and Labor attributes this to the increase in the purchase ratio target from 0.3% to 0.6%.

Among public institutions, quasi-governmental agencies (93.7%) and public enterprises (83.3%) had high compliance rates, but local public enterprises (59.9%), national agencies (38.2%), and education offices (35.3%) showed low compliance.

Jangseong-gun in Jeollanam-do did not even submit related data to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, thus being excluded from the final tally. The Ministry pointed out this as an example showing a lack of willingness to comply with the mandatory purchase of products from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor urged, "It is necessary to fulfill the obligations stipulated by law and to share the responsibility of the public sector in employing persons with disabilities."

Last year, the purchase amount of products from standard workplaces for persons with disabilities by public institutions was 551.8 billion KRW, accounting for 0.91% of the total procurement amount. The average purchase ratio slightly increased compared to the previous year (0.78%).

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