A Meta-Synthesis on the Employment of Visually Impaired Individuals in the Philippines

Abstract

This study provided a meta-synthesis of the difficulties, opportunities, and experiences of visually challenged people seeking employment in the Philippines. The study included 15 of the 343 studies that passed the screening process utilising a set of inclusion and exclusion criteria. The flow diagram for the Preferred Reporting Items for Meta-Analyses and Systematic Reviews was used to organize the chosen papers (PRISMA). We gathered pertinent research articles using the Publish or Perish programme and academic sources like Google Scholar and Scopus. Braun and Clarke\'s six-step thematic analysis was used in conjunction with constant comparison to identify 15 themes as well as 2 emergent meta- themes. According to the findings, visually impaired people face a variety of employment- related obstacles, including hiring discrimination and a lack of access to opportunities. Their ability to deal with the Philippine employment system has come to depend on their level of education, family support, and access to social assistance. In order to give visually impaired people recognition and more accessible career prospects, it is advised that there is a need for recognition, more training programmes, and enforcement of government rules.

Introduction

I. INTRODUCTION

As fellow citizens of the world, people with disabilities are entitled to the same fundamental freedoms as everyone else, as well as the right to participate completely and equally in society. 2020 (UNESCO). The right to access education, training, culture, and information must be fully realized for every individual with a handicap. To ensure that individuals with disabilities can engage to the fullest extent possible, governments and international organizations must take major action (Sunberg Declaration, 2018). An Act to Promote the Return to Civil Employment and Vocational Rehabilitation of the Blind and Other Handicapped, or RA 1179 in the Philippines. The goal of Section 2 is to promote vocational training for the blind so that they can transition from being helpless to contributing members of society (National Council on Disability Affairs, n.d.). Compared to almost 50% of employed PWDs in metropolitan areas, just 16% of visually impaired PWDs work in rural areas. About 60% of visually impaired people living in rural regions who were unemployed were not looking for work. (Mina, 2013).

According to Bachelet, PWDs are granted the same rights as other citizens (2018). Voting rights, freedom of association, social security, court access, and educational opportunities. It is estimated that 1.44 million Filipinos, or 1.57 percent of the population, are disabled based on the 2010 Population and Housing Census. The age group from 15 to 49 has the highest prevalence of disability. The way in which PWDs, including persons who are visually impaired, are treated in society is one of the problems. But prejudice and social marginalization harm people with impairments. Accessibility to employment, social roles, and education has long been an issue.

Researchers are particularly interested in visual impairment because it is directly linked to impaired functioning, social marginalization, and a high chance of poor social and emotional adaptation. Vision is necessary for movement, sociability, and functioning. People who are visually handicapped are more likely to be unemployed in Europe. They are permanently disabled, belong to a manual socioeconomic class where employment is less satisfying, have less opportunity to gain new skills, are paid inadequately, and do not have paid employment. According to studies from France and the US, people with vision impairment make much less money than their non-disabled counterparts.

According to Brezin MD, Ph.D. et al2018 .'s study, people without disabilities make five times as much money from their professional activities as people with visual impairments. The majority (62.8%) of visually impaired people in the Philippines are masseurs, who are classified as technicians and associate professionals. The majority of the people with mobility impairments are laborers and unskilled workers (27.9%), representatives of governments and special interest groups (23.5%), and company executives, managers, managing proprietors, and supervisors (Mina, 2013).

According to data, the Philippines does not adequately recognise the visually impaired population in terms of employment, population, and severity of condition. To synthesize research papers on the employment of individuals with visual impairments conducted in the Philippines, this meta-synthesis was created (Mina, 2013).

Equal employment opportunities are guaranteed by the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities (National Council on Disability Affairs, n.d.). Giving someone the chance does not guarantee they will have a job. According to a study on visual impairments in Mississippi, the biggest barriers to employment were a lack of job prospects, negative employer attitudes, problems with mobility and transportation, a lack of access to print materials, and problems with adaptive technology and accommodations. (1998, Crudden et al.). Low levels of education, a lack of work experience, opportunities for employment in the community, PWD-friendly facilities, knowledge of relevant policies and programmes, and limited access to assistive technology and services because of functional limitations are non-physical barriers that contribute to the respondents' poor employment outcomes in the Philippines. (Mina, 2017). Disability rights legislation and improvements in accessible technology are crucial for ensuring equal access to employment (Branham & Kane, 2015).

Research Questions

Two review questions serve as the main guiding principles for this study:

1. What impact does visual impairment have on a person's day-to-day activities?
2. What difficulties do those who are visually impaired face when searching for employment?

II. METHODOLOGY

A. Research Design

The data pertaining to the employment access of visually impaired Filipino people in society were synthesized by the researcher using meta-synthesis.

By merging qualitative data, a meta-synthesis seeks to create a fresh perspective of the research field. It supports the creation of new hypotheses and should not be confused with a meta-analysis, which uses quantitative data to assess a theory. It basically generates ideas, including programme theories, implementation theories, theories describing why an intervention works or doesn't, as well as hypotheses for future testing or comparison with trial findings (Temple University Libraries, 2022).

The purpose of this study is to collect qualitative data on the challenges, access, and experiences of visually impaired Filipinos. Relevant data will be filtered out in order to raise awareness about the reality of employment opportunities for visually impaired people in the Philippines.

B. Search Strategy

In the scientific database Publish or Perish, phrases like "employee access," "visually impaired," "Philippines," and "challenges" were used to collect data.

Four searchers examined the data in this study. The initial researcher screened the studies using the vision impairment category for the Philippines, which emphasises employment. The studies were arranged by the studies' publishers, including Taylor & Francis, Elsevier, and Google Scholar, by the second researcher. The next researcher will use the exclusion approach to omit unavailable studies, such as books, full texts, or pertinent articles. All researchers using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme will then examine any articles that satisfy the review's inclusion and exclusion criteria (CASP). The search strategy will be shown on the Prisma flow chart.

C. Selection/Inclusion Criteria

The studies included in this review were chosen based on the following criteria: a study involving the employment of visually impaired Filipinos, qualitative research outputs (theses, dissertations, published research articles), 2013-2022 studies, Google Scholar and Scopus databases, reported in English, must qualify using the CASP checklist for quality assessment, and must be peer-reviewed.

D. Data Analysis: Thematic Analysis

Thematic analysis (TA), developed by Clarke et al., was used to handle information in the reviewed paper about the employment of people with visual impairments, obstacles, and opportunities (2015). Researchers used TA to familiarize themselves with the data, code and look for themes, review, name, and define themes, and write the report.

E. Data Analysis

The chosen data were compared, and Caulfield's theme analysis was used to assess them (2020). The six-step theme analysis guideline was adjusted to fit Clarke and Braun's (2017) research process. The steps were as follows: familiarizing with the research articles or studies where initial codes were made; producing initial codes by compiling data pertinent to each code; searching for themes by gathering relevant data for each theme; reviewing themes by creating a thematic map; defining and naming themes that specify the emerging themes; and producing the report by discussing analysis and study implications.

III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Eight (8) research journal articles, six (6) theses, and one (1) dissertation were included in the final collection of 15 studies. Institutions in the Philippines (10), as well as on the Western hemisphere, were affiliated with the authors (5). The study's fifteen (15) sources yielded five (5) themes and two (2) emergent meta-themes.

The summary and description of the final group of 15 papers that made up the meta-synthesis are given in Table 1 below.

One of the largest obstacles facing those who are blind or visually impaired is access to jobs. The biggest barrier preventing people with visual impairments from finding meaningful employment is social stigma. As a result, the majority of them land in low-paying positions. Nevertheless, despite this unfair treatment from society, the majority of them receive assistance from their various support networks, including their families (Kayama et al., n.d.., 2019).

Meta-theme: Barriers

The problems and difficulties faced by those who are visually impaired are described in this category. Ten (10) of the fifteen (15) studies, the most of which are from the Philippines, revealed that visually impaired people face several difficulties and impediments in the workplace.

1. Sub-theme 1: Discrimination in Hiring

In every country in the globe, the employment rate for those who are blind or visually impaired is below a third, which is a global problem (Humanity 2015:5). People with disabilities are still portrayed in the media as unproductive members of society who need help (Cruz, 2017, pp. 26-35). Thus, most visually impaired individuals are confined to low-paying jobs. Some of them indicated that they are too shy to socialize with others. Other factors that contribute to these individuals' unemployment include low education levels, a lack of; work experience, employment opportunities in the community, and PWD-friendly facilities. In addition, limited access to assistive technology and services is limited due to functional limitations and low awareness of pertinent policies and programs. (Mina, 2017).

On the other hand, the possibility of employment is decreased by the severity of visual loss, as well as by the existence of a second impairment or sickness (Douglas et al. 2009, Slade and Edwards 2015). Thus, visually impaired are restricted to the following occupational categories: technicians/associate professionals, plant and machine operators/assemblers, farmers/forestry workers/fishermen, trades/related workers, and laborers/unskilled workers (Tabuga et al., 2017) this is because many employers believe that visually impaired people are ineligible for employment or are only eligible for low-status jobs (Raulstone et al., 2014, pp. 237-243).

2. Sub-theme 2: Limited Access to Opportunities

Medical, economical, educational, and social obstacles come with having a disability. (Lasco and others, 2022). Employees at medical facilities, including health service providers, frequently discriminate against and harbor prejudices towards those who have disabilities.  For those with disabilities, the likelihood of poverty as well as the rates of employment, education, and health are all higher. People with steady jobs may nevertheless make less money than those without disabilities, even when they have the financial resources to support a disability.

Discrimination towards Filipinos with disabilities has also been a problem. (Buenaobra, 2011). Their access to government services and educational possibilities is therefore restricted, and their social, political, and individual rights are not recognised. Additionally, the majority of government initiatives to increase the employment of people with disabilities (PWDs) exclusively concentrate on low-paying, service-oriented jobs like massage therapy and other kinds of vocational education. (Mina, 2013). As a result, the majority of visually impaired persons work as contact center agents, masseuses, or musicians.

Meta-theme: Coping Mechanism

This category highlights the many support systems used by visually impaired people and how those systems influence how they live their daily lives, as shown by the theme analysis. Three (3) out of fifteen (15) people highlighted how the various support systems were able to boost their spirits despite how challenging their circumstances were.

3. Sub-theme 3: Educational Attainment

Those with vision impairment have faced numerous challenges, particularly during the pandemic. PWDs face a variety of difficulties, including limited access to assistive technologies and the internet. Despite the fact that this prevents them from learning, they continue to do so because of the overwhelming support they receive from those around them (Dianato, 2021).

The fact that far fewer people with visual impairments have a college education than those without disabilities is an additional important factor to take into account. Despite the reality that higher education is strongly associated with employment, only a small proportion of people with visual disability have a college degree. These findings emphasize the significance of obtaining a college degree for individuals with visual impairment (McDonnall & Tatch, 2021).

4. Sub-theme 4: Family Support

Parenting disabled children is a challenging and drawn-out process. Among the difficulties they cite are money, schooling, health care, and society, which restricts opportunities to children who are blind. However, the family has been able to deal with and overcome difficulties because of their religious convictions and flexible viewpoint. (Lasco et al., 2022).

A visually impaired person's quality of life can be impacted by parental involvement as they attempt to cope with their disability. Getting several types of assistance can dramatically improve success and the standard of living for those who are blind or have vision impairments (Bambara, et al.).

5. Sub-theme 5:Community Services

The challenge of implementing inclusion is still something that developing nations must deal with. In the Philippines, those with impairments have reduced access to high-quality education. The community still needs to pay attention to and reinforce the lack of programmes and activities. This issue has an impact on how to meet the requirements of PWD children and give them the skills they need to find work. (2017) (Agbon & Mina).

Positively, accessible public transportation has made it simpler for blind people to function normally. As a result, they feel satisfied, safe, and secure. Route maps and large, clear signage have been added to accessible public transit to help those with disabilities. These enhanced their physical environment and increased their opportunities for community engagement. (2017) Sze and Christensen.

Conclusion

Social prejudices towards those who are blind or visually handicapped continue to be the biggest obstacle to finding good work. They are shown to be unproductive contributors to society. Visually handicapped people felt like they lived in a physically inaccessible environment because of their limited opportunities. They encounter several difficulties, especially when it comes to their education. They struggle to get a proper education because they have little access to assistive technology and government help. Optimism and community resources have helped people with vision impairment learn to deal with social and personal challenges. In order to give visually impaired people recognition and more accessible career prospects, it is advised that there is a need for recognition, more training programmes, and enforcement of government rules. Governmental organisations like the National Council on Disability Affairs might put the IRR of RA 10754 into effect, assisting every Filipino citizen with disabilities (National Council on Disability Affairs, 2009).

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Copyright

Copyright © 2023 Franchette Oberes, Cyruss Dale Rabaya, Amariah Tricia Rago, Crystelle Danielle Holly Sasam, Angelito B. Cabanilla Jr.. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.