March 21 is celebrated as World Down Syndrome Day. Benji Balsom, 28, is one of the thousands in Sweden who has Down syndrome. When he graduated in 2017, his mother Sussie Balsom experienced that his options were very limited.
" She thought it was a shame that an unused workforce would be lost. Sussie Balsom found a location on Kungsholmen in Stockholm and started a restaurant together with Benji and his personal assistant Love Lidström. Benji Balsom got his first job at the restaurant, which is only open one day a week.
He also works with breakfast at a large hotel three days a week and gets a salary according to a collective agreement for his work. If Benji Balsom had ended up in daily activity, he would not have gotten a salary but only a so-called habilitation allowance. " A report by Halmstad University, commissioned by the Swedish Social Insurance Agency, has shown that people with intellectual disabilities often stand outside the labor market.
8 percent, had daily activity. Many with intellectual disabilities want a job with a salary, if there were better opportunities and conditions. In addition to the restaurant, Benji and Sussie have also started a digital meeting platform for employers and job seekers called 'arbetskamraterna' (workmates).
Benji Balsom says of his work, "It's great.