[Can discrimination ban guarantee equality of opportunities for disabled persons?]

Embodied in Germany's Basic Law since 1994, the discrimination ban on behalf of disabled persons--in line with similar provisions introduced in other countries--highlights the fact that disabled persons, as individuals and with their lawful rights, have become the point of departure of disability policies, as opposed to the hitherto prevailing social welfare perspective. Banning discrimination alone, though, will enable equal opportunities to be achieved only for some areas of social life; positive discriminations in favour of disabled persons are possible and necessary in addition. When it comes to integration into worklife, banning discrimination against disabled persons will achieve but little. Rather, in a market economy, employers and the general public share a common responsibility, for one, by respecting employers' rights of disposal over their jobs and, for the other, by changing present labour market conditions in favour of disabled persons, i.e., taking measures of positive discrimination.