Disability Employment Awareness Month

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The month of October is Disability Employment Awareness Month. We feel it is important to dive into statistics on this topic that those living with disabilities face every day. As a law firm we want to strive to fight for those that face these challenges. See below for 20 statistics:

 

 

  • People with disabilities make up 18.7% of the working age population, yet almost 70% of people with disabilities are unemployed.
  • Among unemployed Americans with disabilities, 2 out of 3 want to work.
  • The unemployment rate for persons with disabilities between the ages of 16 to 64 and 2019 was 8%. The unemployment rate for the same individuals in 2020 grew to 14.3%.
  • According to a US Population Survey in 2019, persons with a disability are less likely to be in the labor force. 79.2% reported not being in the labor force, with just 19.3% reporting being employed.
  • Between 2018 and 2019, the labor force participation for those with a disability remained unchanged at just 20.8%.
  • Hispanic people with a disability are most likely to be employed at 20.5%, followed by white Americans with disabilities at 19.7%, Asian Americans with disabilities at 18.9% and African Americans with disabilities at 15.6%.
  • Persons with a disability who have a bachelor’s degree or higher are most likely to be employed at 28.2%. Those with less than a high school diploma were less likely to become employed at just 9.1%.
  • According to a population survey, persons with a disability are most likely to work in sales in office jobs. 22.3% of persons with disabilities employed work in this field. The service industry in the second most popular occupation area for people with disabilities with 20.7% of people with disabilities working in this industry.
  • People with disabilities are more likely to work part-time. Among those with disabilities who are employed, 32% are employed part-time compared to those without disabilities who work part-time at 17%.
  • A 2018 study found that companies who hired people with disabilities outperformed their peers and saw several improvements, such as becoming 70% more productive, having 30% higher profit margins and 200% higher net income.
  • Of those with disabilities who are employed, the median earnings gap between them and people without disabilities is over $10,000 per year.
  • The employment gap between people with disabilities and people without disabilities hovers around 40.7%.
  • North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming have the highest employment rates for people with disabilities.
  • Many people with disabilities who are employed sadly are in the fastest declining occupations, which are service, production and transportation. The fastest growing occupations are management, professional and technical jobs.
  • An estimated 386 million of the world’s working age people are disabled.
  • Employed people with disabilities are more likely to be self-employed than those without a disability.
  • Persons with a disability are less likely to have a bachelor’s degree than those with no disability. People with disabilities with higher education are more likely to be employed.
  • Persons with a disability are less likely to work in management, professional and related occupations at 34.1% compared with 41% for people without a disability.
  • The portion of workers employed in government positions in 2019 is the same for those without a disability at 13.3%.
  • The unemployment rate for men with a disability is the same as women with a disability at 7.3-4%.

 

persons with a disability are less likely to work in management, professional, and related occupations at 34.1 percent compared with 41% for people without a disability

The Spinal Cord Injury Law Firm is committed to helping people in all aspects of life following a spinal cord injury or other catastrophic injury. Contact us today at info@spinalcordinjurylawyers.com or 1-877-SCI-FIRM for a free legal consultation.