LISBON, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Portuguese public and private companies of medium and large size are obliged to hire between 1 percent and 2 percent of the disabled people respectively, according to legislation published Thursday.
According to the new law, which establishes the system of employment quotas for the disabled people with a degree of incapacity equal to or greater than 60 percent, all companies, whether public or private, of medium or large, are obliged to comply with the quotas as of February 1.
The medium-sized enterprises with a workforce between 75 and 100 employees must employ at least 1 percent of disabled workers, while large enterprises with more than 100 employees required to hire at least 2 percent.
In order to comply with the new legislation, a transitional period of five years is allowed for medium-sized companies and a four-year period for large companies.
Portugal has been on the track of slow economic recovery since it exited from a 78 billion-euro bailout program it signed with international lenders in May 2014 and the country's unemployment has been dropping considerably in recent years.
The new legislation is seen as a measure to promote the employment of the disabled in the current situation.
