Many hearing-impaired people are illiterate, unemployed and under-employed due to widespread prejudice by the general public and a lack, especially in developing countries, of the basic tools for rehabilitation (such as education in lipreading, and hearing aids). Special education, when it exists, is often disregarded or postponed. As a rule the deaf are taught a manual art or craft, regardless of their individual attitudes and preferences; vocational pre-counselling and counselling systems are neglected and often the choice is confined to the three or four trades taught in the school workshop.