Disability rights in France: a day at the CEP, using GIHP and COTOREP

Dominique, a French Alsacian wheelchair user, told me that I should attend a day of information about the law and the disabled at the CEP. He is a translator (French/ English and German) and I’ve known him and his wife for some time. He also said that although it was a center of info for people with disabilities, it is, nevertheless, not accessible by any form of public transport and I would do well to join the GIHP which is the Dial-a-ride system here in France, which I did. I had to go to my GP for a medical certificate.

On Wednesday, I was pleased to find the service punctual, courteous and pleasant. I am usually reluctant to use this type of ‘special’ transport. There’s nothing to enforce the feeling of being disabled than being conveyed in one of these vehicles. But the van was newish and discreet and I was not obliged to have a city tour(by having other passengers) before arriving at the CEP.

There were about 80 attendees. Sylvain Graff, the lawyer and speaker for the morning, specializes on disability cases. Basically from what I can understand is that French people with disabilities do have much recourse to their rights as regarding to disability laws. There is not much taught in law schools and French legislators do not know much about disability issues. Maitre Graff presented certain finer points of French law that affects inheritance and state benefits. The ceiling rate for resources in France is 6847, 10 euros for a single person a year. I cannot but make a comparison between this meeting and the one I went to in Boston. Maitre Graff was the expert, questions were directed to him although there were interpolations from Dominique and others (they appear to be social workers. ) he seems competent and direct and he is conscious ot the paucity of recourse in the law for people with disabilities in France. There seems to be more concrete legislation when it comes to architectural accessibility. There was a representative from the office that gives out permits for new buildings in Strasbourg - to make sure they are in compliance with accessibility and other architectural legislation.

When the morning finished Dominique and I had a sandwich lunch together – he wanted to introduce me to the director of the Center. He was very helpful and gave me a few pointers – first of all that I should register myself with COTOREP as a disabled job seeker. He also said I should make my social worker work for me as s/he is the gatekeeper to lots of services. I have never really used much social services in the past –it seems like I will begin to have some intimate knowledge. It seems like a long bureaucratic process. However, they were insistent that I get the social worker for me. In France, there is a social worker designated for each section of the neighbourhood. I have to fill in the form, get a medical certificate from my doctor that I am disabled. There is the magic 80% disability which entitles you to aid like home helps etc. They said if that didn 'work, I would have to go to the (I think they said ) prefecture! They also said I should find out the French equivalent of my degree.

The next day I went back to the lady that ANPE signed up for me to help me find a job, Lauwen Partners. The ANPE lady said that this woman would be a good guide and help me find out about where to apply for jobs and reorganize my cv and discuss options with me. At the moment, I really wonder is the woman did her homework. She did not have anything new for me. I am an information scientist - I know if I was in her place, I would have a COTOREP form for me to fill and and information on how to become a French citizen at hand. She shouldn't be telling me that I can pull it up from the Internet. She certainly should have figured out that I needed to be registered as a disabled worker to be able to take any disability legislation advantages. I know I am probably an unusual case but she did not seem predisposed to learning more about finding out working conditions for people with disabilities.