Four Areas of Workplace Inequality That Impact People With Disabilities
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Each October, the US observes National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), and this year’s chosen theme is “Advancing Access and Equity.” In today’s newsletter, I would like to share some statistics and information to help us understand how employers are measuring up against that goal, and to point toward what we can do as diversity recruiters to align with this important theme.
When it comes to selection and hiring, our country’s key piece of legislation is the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which protects people with disabilities against discrimination in job seeking and employment, as well as in other areas of life. Of course, to make this protection meaningful, what really matters is inclusion.
And there is plenty of evidence that it brings considerable benefits for employers.
In a study by Forbes, disability inclusion was identified as a key driver of innovation and business growth. Also, many companies have indicated that hiring people with disabilities improved their bottom line, and the academic literature concurs with the economic argument. Another article by Gartner backs this up with some eye-catching statistics: “Organizations that actively employ people with disabilities experience 89% higher retention rates, a 72% increase in employee productivity, and a 29% increase in profitability.”
But how much of the workforce does this account for?
Recent data (for 2022) suggest that 12% of the US population identifies as having a disability, and based on further analysis, a Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report on the findings stated: “The employment–population ratio for persons with a disability in 2022 was the highest on record since comparable data were first published in 2008.” Since the end of 2020, that ratio has actually been growing faster than for people without disabilities, driven by the rise of remote working.
On the face of it, then, the current outlook seems encouraging. A growing number of people with disabilities have been securing employment over the past few years, and the unemployment rate for this group has dropped from 10.8% in 2021 to 8.3% at present.
However, that does not tell the whole story.
Our research has identified four key areas where things need to improve to achieve employment equity for people with disabilities in the US. In keeping with this month’s NDEAM theme, I will share these areas briefly below, then suggest how we might respond to contribute to a solution.
1. Participation in employment is not equal.
In May 2023, according to the BLS, the labor force participation rate for people with a disability was 40.2%, compared with 77.6% for people without a disability. In fact, a similar degree of disparity has persisted ever since the BLS began collecting data on these rates in 2008. Moreover, the most recent data broken down by race or ethnicity are from 2022, where the participation rate for Black Americans with disabilities (29.7%) was significantly lower than the national average (37.8%) and was the lowest among all groups.
While the last example highlights the intersectionality of underrepresentation, as we have seen elsewhere, the wider data suggest that all people with disabilities face barriers to employment. The current record high for the employment–population ratio is certainly a move in the right direction, but at present, this only represents the early stages of closing a large gap relative to workers without disabilities.
2. Employment patterns are not equal.
The current unemployment rate for people with disabilities (8.3%) remains above pre-pandemic levels (6.9% at the end of 2019) and is more than double the rate for people without disabilities (3.2%). On top of that, 30% of workers with a disability are part-time employees, which is roughly double the rate for people without a disability (16%). Self-employment rates are also above average for people with disabilities. Taken together, these disparate outcomes suggest that not all employers are acting equitably toward employees with disabilities, even though they may be hiring them more often.
The above information suggests a degree of marginalization for people with disabilities seeking full-time employment, and the situation may be compounded by our next observation.
3. People with disabilities are underrepresented in certain roles.
Based on statistics for 2020, again from the BLS, people with disabilities are underrepresented in management and professional roles but overrepresented in service jobs. For example, around 20% of workers with a disability were found in professional occupations, compared with 25% of those without a disability.
There seems to be no good reason why this should be the case, especially given the growing adoption of tools for effective remote working. Employers perhaps need to assess their current programs to ensure that people with disabilities are not being overlooked in DEI initiatives and recruitment (and retention) strategies. This is particularly pertinent in light of our final point.
4. Many employers are falling short on inclusion.
As articulated by Forbes, there is a “disability inclusion gap” in the workplace that needs to be closed. A key aspect of this is the pay gap. People with disabilities who hold advanced degrees earn around $20,000 per year less than those without disabilities (with an equivalent education), and there are other important omissions. Around half of businesses fail to properly test the accessibility of their websites, and during recruitment, many employers do not actively offer the option of accommodation(s) at interview.
As I explained in my previous article on inclusive hiring practices for people with disabilities, offering these accommodations upfront (rather than waiting for candidates to request them) is a great way to show prospective employees your inclusive culture, right from the early stages of their engagement with your organization. It is a simple but powerful way of communicating that you value their application. Furthermore, while employers often express concern over the potential cost of on-the-job accommodations, more than half of them (58%) actually cost nothing, and for the remainder, the costs rarely exceed $500.
In response to these findings, I think it is helpful to briefly consider the opinion of people with disabilities themselves. Besides the impact of disability itself, the top three self-identified barriers to employment for these individuals are a lack of education or training, a lack of transportation, and a need for special workplace accommodations.
There is no reason why employers should not be able to address all of these; for example, through on-the-job training, remote or hybrid working options, and a clearly communicated willingness to make accommodations. Employers that directly offer solutions to one or more of these perceived barriers may be able to attract more applications from people with disabilities by signaling an inclusive culture, right from the initial job posting.
JOIN US IN THE COMMENTS: Is there a focus on NDEAM where you work? And what benefits has including people with disabilities in your diversity recruitment efforts brought to your organization? As always, we value your feedback, so join the conversation if anything in this article really stood out to you.
