As layoffs and hiring freezes dominate the news, new federal data shows that people with disabilities are entering the workforce in record numbers.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), about 21% of people with disabilities were employed in the U.S. in 2022, up from about 19% in 2021. This is the highest percentage since 2008, when the U.S. began tracking this statistic.
“increase [in people with disabilities securing employment] “That’s fantastic,” says Craig Leen, an attorney at K&L Gates law firm in Washington, D.C., and former director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. “Historically, people with disabilities have had much higher unemployment rates and much lower labor force participation rates than the general population, making them the largest potentially untapped labor force group in the United States.”
According to the report, by 2022, this will be:
Half of people with disabilities are aged 65 or older, nearly three times the rate among people without disabilities. Thirty percent of workers with disabilities are employed part-time, compared with 16 percent of workers without disabilities. People with disabilities who have jobs are more likely to be self-employed than people without jobs.
The report found that the unemployment rate for people aged 16-64 with disabilities fell from 10.8% in 2021 to 8.2% in 2022. However, the unemployment rate for this group was still twice as high as that of people without disabilities.
Why employment rates continue to rise
The Economic Innovation Group, a Washington, D.C.-based public policy organization, evaluated past BLS reports and noted that employment rates for people with disabilities have been rising since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
They attributed this positive trend to a “moderate tightening of the labor market,” which they said is creating job opportunities for this group of workers that will continue beyond the pandemic.
“Given rising wages and high job openings, the data suggests that for at least the past year, labor demand has exceeded labor supply, creating a labor shortage,” researchers at the Economic Innovation Group said. “This appears to have been positive for the employment rate.” [disabled people]”
The widespread availability of remote work has also helped people with disabilities secure employment.
“The increase in labor force participation during the pandemic has been driven primarily by the widespread availability of remote work, which tends to increase labor force participation rates for both people with disabilities and their caregivers,” Lean said.
He said remote working has also led to increased use of more accessible technology, such as captioned web conferencing and accessible websites, making it easier for people with disabilities to work from home.
[SHRM members-only toolkit: Developing an Accessible Workplace]
Providing access to remote work for individuals with disabilities also helps federal contractors retain experienced workers and make progress toward achieving the affirmative action goals of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
However, some employers are beginning to require employees to return to the office, which could have a negative impact on improving workforce participation rates for people with disabilities, Lean said.
“Companies should use this evidence to find ways to increase and retain people with disabilities in their workforce,” he said. “Offering telework on a continuous basis is an effective way to achieve this, whether offered individually as an accommodation or more generally as a matter of universal design.”
Does your benefits package support workers with disabilities?
Jessica Tuman, director of Voya Cares and Voya Enterprise ESG Center of Excellence at Voya Financial in Atlanta, said the increase in job placements for workers with disabilities is encouraging, but companies shouldn’t become complacent.
“More efforts are needed to eliminate the employment gap between disabled and able-bodied people,” she said.
To better support workers with disabilities, employers should critically review their employee benefit plans to evaluate whether they are intentionally supporting the well-being of employees with disabilities, Thuman said.
For example, our Employee Concierge service can help support employees and their families with complex, chronic, ongoing care needs, while our Special Needs Planning service can connect employees with disabilities with experienced consultants who can answer questions like:
Government benefit regulations. Company benefits. Financial considerations for carers and people with disabilities.
“Employers who recruit and hire people with disabilities need to do more than offer a competitive workplace benefits package to keep them employed,” Tuman said. “Creating a supportive and inclusive culture is the ‘secret sauce’ that makes an organization an employer of choice for people with disabilities.”
Starting an employee resource group for employees with disabilities can help new hires feel welcome through shared experiences, while employee training initiatives can dispel stigma around disabilities and help managers prepare to interview, hire, and work with people with disabilities.
“Providing educational opportunities for employees with disabilities helps us recognize and meet their unique needs, such as an introduction to special needs plans, details about ABLE accounts, basics about government benefits and sessions on how to hold family meetings,” Tuman said. “All of these efforts help solidify a culture of inclusion.”