Strengthening Inclusive Employment: Turkey’s Supported Employment and Guidance Services for Persons with Disabilities

Author: Euroguidance Turkey

Following the restructuring process in the early 2000s, the Turkish Employment Agency (İŞKUR), has begun to provide services in both employment and career guidance services tailored to the needs of the target groups. In this context, İŞKUR has developed its job and vocational consultancy services for different target groups. The job and vocational counselling services, launched in 2012, were made more specialized in 2017 with the introduction of profile-based consulting services.

Job coaching services for persons with disabilities, which are one of the most important components of profile-based consulting services, have also been put into practice within this scope in 2018 because of that İŞKUR’s activities are grounded in the principle that disability should not be a barrier to participation in working life.

The overarching objective of disabled job coaching is to promote the social inclusion, professional development and sustainable employment of persons with disabilities through tailored guidance, employer cooperation and accessible digital solutions. These efforts aim not only to support jobseekers, but also to raise awareness among employers and strengthen equal opportunities in the labour market.

Supported Employment and Disability Job Coaching

A central component of this work is the Disability Job Coaching model, which adapts international supported employment practices to the national context. The model focuses on assessing each individual’s abilities, identifying suitable jobs, supporting workplace adaptation and ensuring retention through continuous follow-up.

Job coaches for disabled carry out job placements that are specifically suitable for disabled, they also track their orientation to workplace and their jobs. They establish a close dialogue mechanism for them including their family, co-workers and employers.

Engelsiz İŞKUR: An Accessible Digital Platform

To complement its tailored job coaching services and improve access to information and support, İŞKUR launched the Engelsiz İŞKUR web site (https://engelsiz.iskur.gov.tr/), a comprehensive digital platform designed for both jobseekers with disabilities and employers wishing to hire them. The platform integrates all relevant İŞKUR services, including job-matching, career guidance, entrepreneurship grants, vocational rehabilitation programmes and success stories.

Alongside its accessibility features, the platform offers:

• Up-to-date labour market data through Disability Vacancy Map, Disability Employment Map and Disability Quota Occupancy Map (A map showing the fulfilment of disability employment quotas),
• A candidate pool that enables employers to identify and contact jobseekers with disabilities,
• Provincial announcements and event calendars,
• Useful resources, videos and a user feedback system.

Lessons for the Guidance Community

These initiatives illustrate how targeted counselling, trained specialists and accessible digital tools can significantly improve labour-market participation for persons with disabilities. For the European guidance community, Turkey’s experience offers practical insights into:

• Integrating supported employment into mainstream public employment services,
• Professionalising disability-specific guidance roles,
• Leveraging digital platforms to increase accessibility and employer engagement,
• Building data-driven systems that inform policy and daily counselling practice.