An embrace of distant work spurred by the pandemic helped the employment fee for disabled folks attain an all-time excessive final 12 months.
The proportion of disabled individuals who have been employed rose to 21.3% in 2022, in response to information launched late final week by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s greater than a two proportion level improve from 2021 and probably the most since 2008, when comparable information have been first printed.
The unemployment fee for disabled folks dropped final 12 months together with the nationwide common. And whereas the labor pressure participation fee did tick up for these with out disabilities, it went up by thrice as a lot for folks with disabilities.
Daily duties resembling commuting and navigating an workplace house will be troublesome for folks relying on their disabilities. As firms adopted distant and hybrid work preparations, extra disabled folks utilized for and landed jobs — typically for the primary time in years.
The current push by firms urging employees to return to the workplace could threaten the positive factors made by disabled folks, who comprise about 12% of the inhabitants, in response to the BLS. A report by the consulting agency McKinsey & Co. printed final June estimated that 35% of firms provided a completely distant choice.
Overall, disabled individuals are nonetheless much less prone to be employed than their counterparts who don’t have disabilities, and they’re twice as prone to be employed part-time, the BLS report mentioned. They’re additionally extra prone to be self-employed.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”