The Aussie Fair Go Isn’t Working
Employment Rate among People with Disabilities at 54%
“Once I saw the stick, I checked out."
Today we celebrate the International Day of People with Disabilities. We celebrate the value of people with disabilities and the contributions they make to our society. They have gifts, skills, talents, and characteristics to offer the Australian workforce, yet only 54% of people with disabilities are employed.
In this article you will learn more about the issues facing people living with disability who want to find work, and how employers can make a difference.
Kim, who has visual impairment, watched as her friends in high school got jobs in fast food restaurants and retail, which were not employment options for her. As she got older, she took up volunteer roles, but they fell short of her hopes for working life. However, they did give her a sense of purpose and an avenue for her deep desire to contribute to society. Employers who would consider her as a potential employee were rare. As she left one interview, she overheard the interviewer say, “Once I saw the stick, I checked out.”
When Kim was 22, she sought the assistance of a disability employment agency. The agency equipped her with knowledge and skills to apply for job interviews and working life. She landed a job as a medical transcriber.
Kim now works as a support coordinator for a disability support agency. She assists NDIS participants to understand their plan [KM1] and make informed decisions as to how to use it. Having a vision impairment, Kim brings lived experience and empathy together with knowledge of the NDIS system. Her finding purpose and fulfilment in work has come after years of frustration and disappointment[JW2] .
In her role as a disability support coordinator—contributing to the lives of people in her community—Kim has found that people with disabilities who lack opportunities to work have a lower sense of meaning or wellbeing.
This International Day of People with Disabilities, the United Nations theme is “United in action to rescue and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for, with and by persons with disabilities.’ [1]
The SDGs were adopted by the United Nations in 2015. The 17 goals set out to globally eradicate poverty, protect the environment, and increase sustainability and equity. The achievement of each SDG is measured by targets and indicators. [2]
Sustainable Development Goal 8
SDG 8 addresses access to employment opportunities for all people.
“Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.”
Target 5 of SDG 8 is, “By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value.”
The term “decent work” is defined by The International Labor Organisation: “It involves opportunities for work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for all, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organise and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity and treatment for all women and men.” [3]
How is Australia doing?
One in five Australians live with a disability Australians: 4.4 million people. Therefore, disability is a common human experience in this country. Furthermore, the prevalence of disability increases with age, with two in five people over 65 living with a disability.[4]
In June 2022, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported on employment rates among people with disabilities between the working ages of 15 to 64. 53% of people with disabilities are engaged in the Australian labour force, compared to 84% of those without disabilities. While 56% of men with disabilities were employed, 89% of men without disabilities had a job. 51% of women with disabilities were employed compared to 80% of women without disabilities. [5] It takes graduates with disabilities 61.5% longer to attain full-time employment than graduates without disabilities.4
Rates of employment vary significantly between types of disabilities. People with physical, sensory or speech disabilities are markedly more likely to be employed than people with head injuries, acquired brain injuries or strokes.5
What is a disability?[6]
In the past, disability was defined by a person’s medical conditions, which needed to be treated or cured.
However, the social model of disability defines it as an interaction between a person’s impairment and the barriers that society has erected. Barriers increase a person’s experience of disability.
For example, Sarah, who has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair, wants to enter a hair salon. The only way to enter the salon is via steps. Because Sarah is mobile, through using a wheelchair, her impairment (multiple sclerosis) is not stopping her from entering the salon. It is the steps that prevent her from entering. The steps are the
barrier, increasing her experience of disability. If there is entry to the salon via a ramp, Sarah can enter independently, and her experience of disability is decreased.
Impairments
Impairments are long term conditions that affect people’s functioning. They can be:
· Physical: difficulty in body function. For example, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, paraplegia.
· Sensory. For example, vision impairment or hearing impairment.
· Psychosocial: including mental disorders. For example, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia.
· Intellectual: difficulty with reasoning and memory. For example, Down syndrome.
Barriers:
· Attitudinal, such as stigma, negative assumptions about people with disabilities and their capabilities, discrimination.
· Physical, such as steps, narrow doorways, uneven paths, lack of accessible facilities including bathrooms.
· Communication, such as lack of braille, sign language interpreters or easy to understand communication.
· Institutional, such as discriminatory policies or lack of policies that stipulate inclusion and accessibility.
Contributing factors
In December 2020, the NDIS published a report on the employment outcomes for participants of the NDIS. [7]
When they asked participants via survey if they were currently working in a paid job, 31.3% responded with 'No, but I would like one.”
Participants were more likely to enjoy successful employment outcomes if they:
· were job seeking
· were supported in job seeking
· had experience in an unpaid job NDIS for a longer period
· participated in informal employment activities
· were studying or had completed tertiary education
· had milder disabilities
· had goals and allocation regarding employment in their NDIS plan
· lived in regional areas[JW3] [SW4]
· lived with a partner, or a partner with children
· had strong relationships within their community
· were a member of a community, cultural or religious group
· had caring responsibilities
· self-assessed their health as excellent.
Participants were less likely to enjoy successful employment outcomes if they:
· requires support for higher number of daily activities
· were female
· were older
· were indigenous
· lived in public housing or private rentals
· lived in a Local Government Area with higher rates of unemployment
· assessed themselves as having as fair or poor health
· had psychosocial disability or acquired brain injury
· were working in informal employment
· were impacted by COVID-19
· lacked support to do their job
· lacked confidence or experienced anxiety
· had difficulties with communication/language/comprehension
· experienced difficulties with the interview process
· lacked transition and capacity building in Australian Disability Enterprises. (ADEs are not–for-profit organisations that provide means of work for people with disabilities who are not able to participate in mainstream work.)
Employers can address barriers
· Attitudinal:
o How do you see people with disabilities? Take time for reflection and self-examination.
o Endeavour to consider an applicant’s ability and suitability to the job rather than their disability
· Physical:
o Dignified access is a set of standards which employers are obligated to abide by: read this summary You can find more about disability access here.
· Communication:
o Provide information in different formats. Be proactive rather than reactive. Be ready to provide information for potential employees, customers and clients as needed.
· Institutional
o Draft a disability inclusion statement for your workplace. Name the steps you will take to ensure accessibility and inclusion.
Many people with disabilities lack the opportunities to find purpose and a means to contribute to their community via work. With so few employed, employers are denied unique skills, gifts experiences and characteristics. As we celebrate the International Day of People with Disabilities, may we each consider what part we can play in removing barriers for people with disabilities who are seeking decent and fulfilling work.
[1] International Day of People with Disabilities, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.idpwd.com.au/about/about-idpwd.
[2] “Sustainable Development Goals,” United Nations Development Program, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.undp.org.
[3] “Decent Work,” International Labour Organisation, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/decent-work/lang--en/index.htm.
[4] “Disability Statistics,” Australian Network on Disability, accessed November 29, 2023, https://and.org.au/resources/disability-statistics/.
[5] “People with disability in Australia,” Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/disability/people-with-disability-in-australia/contents/employment/labour-force-participation.
[6] “What is Disability?," CBM Australia, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.cbm.org.au/luke14/inclusion-resources/what-is-disability.
[7] Employment outcomes for NDIS participants. (Australia: National Disability Insurance Scheme, (2020), 117-131.