Promotion of Vocational Rehabilitation Services

Local Vocational Centers for Persons with Disabilities and Large Region Vocational Centers for Persons with Disabilities provide vocational rehabilitation* services to meet the various needs of persons with disabilities and the employers in order to promote the employment and employment security of disabled individuals. * In the Law for Employment Promotion of Persons with Disabilities, “vocational rehabilitation” is defined as taking the measures stipulated in the Law, including vocational guidance, vocational training, and employment placement, for promoting vocational independence of persons with disabilities (Article 2, Paragraph 7).

Local Vocational Centers for Persons with Disabilities under JEED Prefectural Offices (47 Prefectures)

Providing vocational counselors for persons with disabilities and working in close cooperation with related bodies such as public employment offices (Hello Work), Employment and Life Support Centers for Persons with Disabilities, hospitals,and special needs schools, Local Vocational Centers serve as the core facilities in each prefecture by offering vocational rehabilitation services based on the local needs.

1 Services for Persons with Disabilities

Vocational Evaluation & Guidance

The centers elicit individual employment desires, evaluate occupational ability, etc., as well as provide consultation and guidance. Based on this process, the centers will create a Vocational Rehabilitation Plan according to individual conditions, including support content and assistance methods for adjustment to the workplace.

Work Preparation Support

Support is to be provided to understand and improve vocational challenges required for employment or work adjustment, to acquire vocational knowledge, and to improve social skills. A personalized curriculum, based on the individual’s disability condition and vocational challenges is to be prepared to offer the bespoke support for persons with disabilities, leading to corresponding support such as employment placement through Hello Work and job coaches.

Others

The centers determine if individuals have the intellectual disabilities that are covered under employment measures under the employment quota system, as well as assess the severity of their disabilities.

2 Services for Employers

The centers implement various kinds of support services concerning the disability employment, which include assisting employers’ initiative for new employment, helping workers adjust to their current workplaces and improve their careers, and helping those on sick leave return to work. The centers also analyze the needs of employers regarding the disability employment and problems in employmentmanagement, and also provide information and consultation for employing persons with disabilities. According to their needs, the centers will create Employer Support Plans and systematically provide professional assistance. Specifically, the centers give advice on implementing employee training organized by the employers and cooperate by dispatching instructors to the seminars,as well as give advice regarding job creation. More so,the “Employer Support Workshop” is implementedwhere employers can get clues on solving employment management problems through group-work.

3 Services for Persons with Disabilities and Employers

Support Offered by Job Coaches

Comprehensive Employment Support for Persons with Mental Disabilities

In cooperation with the attending physicians, the centers provide professional and comprehensive support to the employers and persons with mental disabilities in order to satisfy the various needs of new employment, returning to work, and a continuous employment.

1.Support for Returning to Work

The following support is provided to promote a smooth return to work for persons with mental health problems who have been on leave.

• Coordination for returning to work

  In consultations with the person with mental health problems, his/her employer, and an attending physician, the centers provide assistance to reach a consensus among the three parties regarding the process and goals of returning to work.

• "Re-work Support" (Support for returning to work)

  Based on the Re-work Support Plan, the centers use work practice and lectures to provide persons with mental health problems with the support required to improve their capacity to adapt, including life rhythm reorganization, improvement of concentration and endurance, health control, and stress management. The centers provide support also to employers for developing the environment to accept these workers (creation of a re-work plan, education of supervisors and coworkers, etc.). The experience of working at the place to which the persons with mental health problems will return (rehabilitation work) is then simulated as a "warm-up" toward returning to work.

2. Employment Promotion Support and Support for Continuous Employment

In order for persons with mental disabilities to move forward smoothly with employment and work adjustment,the centers provide work preparation support and work adjustment guidance based on the Vocational Rehabilitation Plan, which is designed according to the individual circumstances. In order for employers to move forward smoothly with the employment and continuation of employment of persons with mental disabilities, the centers provide advice and assistance regarding employment management including recruitment planning, along with work adjustment guidance. According to their needs, the centers also provide support by job coaches and follow-up services in order to continue a stable employment for people with mental disabilities.

4.Services for relevant local institutions

Advice and assistance related to vocational rehabilitation

As the core institutions for vocational rehabilitationservices in each region, services are provided in close cooperation with Hello Work and employment support institutions. The centers provide technical advice and assistance related to vocational rehabilitation, including ways of formulating support plans and implementing support as well as methods of coordinating with other organizations to the relevant institutions such as Employment and Life Support Centers for Persons with Disabilities and work transition support providers. In addition, the centers promote acquisition of the necessary basic knowledge and technical and practical skills for implementing effective vocational rehabilitation by offering a Basic Employment Support Course and Employment Support Practical Training (held in 14 areas nationwide) to the personnel in charge of employment support at work transition support providers as well as at welfare and medical care agencies. The centers, through these efforts, are working to improve the local employment support network by forming a common understanding of employment support for persons with disabilities.

Education and Training of Job Coaches

As part of the job coach training program, the centers conduct skills training that focuses on practical training at business establishments. In addition, support training is also conducted for job coaches who have already completed education and training of job coaches and support skills training, aiming to provide practical know-how on work adjustment support.

Large Region Vocational Centers for Persons with Disabilities/Vocational Ability Development Centers

With vocational counselors and vocational training instructors (Techno Instructors) assigned to these centers, vocational rehabilitation service, including vocational evaluation, guidance and training (Hello Training), are provided in cooperation with the medical rehabilitation facilities. The National Vocational Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities and the National Kibi-Kogen Vocational Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities actively take in persons with disabilities from large regions throughout the country who require special support for vocational training (hereinafter referred to as “persons with special support needs”),including individuals with mental disabilities, developmental disabilities, and higher brain dysfunctions, and implement pioneering vocational training. Based on the results of such activities, these centers compile manuals and other documents for vocational training methods and teaching techniques for persons with special support needs. With the aim of raising the general standard of vocational training, these documents are distributed to other vocational ability development centers through the opinion exchange meetings to promote vocational training for persons with disabilities. In addition, they engage in assistance for establishing and operating the training courses for persons with special support needs and others.

National Vocational Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities (Saitama Prefecture)

Training Sections:Mechanical drawing, Electronic drawing, Technical operation,Architectural design, DTP/web operations, OA system,Accounting work, and OA clerical work Office Work Logistics　and Material Management Assistant Work＊1
＊1 This course aims to teach the skills and knowledge required to perform　auxiliary tasks in service work such as office work, sales, logistics, the　restaurant industry, and cleaning (training courses: office assistant, sales
and logistics work, and service work).

National Kibi-Kogen Vocational Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities (Okayama Prefecture)

Training Sections:Mechanical drawing, Electronic drawing, System design,Accounting work, OA system, Job Development ＊2, andPractical work ＊3
＊2 This section is for persons with higher brain dysfunctions, developmental disabilities and mental disabilities (Training Courses:office work, distribution/assembly work, service work).
＊3 This section is for persons with intellectual disabilities (Training Courses: clerical/sales/distribution work, cooking assistance/restaurant service).