Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 01:59 pm
The new jobs report showed that the percentage of persons with a disability who are fully employed has reached an all-time high under President Biden.
Dean Baker tweeted the numbers:
5.8 percent unemployment rate is also an all-time low
— Dean Baker (@DeanBaker13) December 2, 2022
Even with the improvement, more than one out of every four disabled persons does not have a job.
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, half of the people with disabilities are over age 65, and 80% of those with disabilities aren’t in the workforce, “Persons who are neither employed nor unemployed are not in the labor force. A large proportion of persons with a disability—about 8 in 10—were not in the labor force in 2021, compared with about 3 in 10 of those with no disability. In part, this reflects the older age profile of persons with a disability; persons age 65 and over are much less likely to participate in the labor force than younger age groups. Across all age groups, however, persons with a disability were more likely to be out of the labor force than those with no disability. ”
Given this context, the fact that the Biden administration has overseen record growth in employment participation is a remarkable accomplishment.
More can and should be done.
Increasing employment opportunities for persons with disabilities should not be a partisan issue. Those persons with disabilities who can work often want to, but they aren’t given opportunities due to accessibility issues, transportation issues, and sometimes discrimination.
As a person with a disability who had to go the self-employed route to find work, I can tell you from personal experience that it is good for society and life-changing for persons with disabilities when they are given the opportunity to work.
As an Americans With Disabilities Act expert, I can also tell you that there is much more we can do as a country.
President Biden is overseeing a record-breaking economy, but more can be done to create opportunities for persons with disabilities to contribute and achieve their full potential.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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