The crossroad: privacy, disability and employment

Privacy, dignity, equality, and non-discrimination are fundamental values upon which the European Union was founded. They are firmly embedded in the Treaties of the European Union, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and secondary legislation. Combatting discrimination in the labour market and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities are core obligations of the European Union. Not many are aware that more than 15 per cent of the total potential workforce of the European Union has some form of disability - of which over 50 per cent are unemployed. This is all the more reason for the EU to maintain its ommitment to include these indivuduals in the labour force and to guarantee their fair treatment and protection of their particularly sensitive data. It is precisely in this light that The Crossroads: Privacy, Disability and Employment must be seen: a sort of driving manual for disability organizations. It will be important to collect, process and handle personal data and to embrace new technologies without compromising privacy in the process. This manual also provides the various stakeholders with relevant articles of the GDPR and other legislative texts to equip them with sufficient knowledge and useful tools to ensure and to successfully navigate the crossroads between privacy and employment for persons with disabilities.