Archive:Disability statistics - barriers to employment
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This article is part of the set of articles on Disability that provides information on persons that are limited in their working activities, based on the data reported in the framework of the 2011 ad hoc module (AHM)of the EU Labour Force Survey (LFS). It offers an overview of the proportion of the population aged 15-64 that reported limitations in their work in 31 countries (EU-28 Member States, Turkey, Iceland and Switzerland).
There are various reasons that could cause a work limitation to an individual. Of interest from a disability perspective are not only the health-related ones but also the other personal or environmental reasons, such as, family responsibilities, lack of qualifications, etc. The analysis below looks at how these reasons interfere with the work that an individual can do. The characteristics of the limitations address the number of hours worked, the type of work (such as having problems in carrying heavy loads, working outdoors, sitting for a long time) and getting to and from work.
Results presented in this article have been compiled according to two definitions of disability, as follows:
- Definition 1: Persons having a basic activity difficulty (such as seeing, hearing, walking, communicating);
- Definition 2: Persons limited in their work activity because of a longstanding health problem and/or a basic activity difficulty (LHPAD).
Main statistical findings
People with work limitation due to LHPAD face more barriers to employment
In 2011, more than one out of three persons having a work limitation caused by a longstanding health problem or an activity difficulty (LHPAD) were also limited because of other personal or environment factor in the EU-28. Conversely, only 9% of the persons without work limitation due to LHPAD were limited because of other personal or environmental reasons (see Figure 1).
Among the persons having a work limitation because of both LHPAD, Hungary and Romania (both 75%), Poland (72%), the United Kingdom (69%) and Cyprus (56%) reported the highest shares of people facing personal or environment factors which limited their work, while this proportion was below 10% in Switzerland (3%), Turkey (6%), Latvia (7%), Denmark and Sweden (both 8%), Portugal (9%), and France (10%).
Limitations in work due to personal or environmental factors were much less common the population without limitation caused by a LHPAD. The percentage varied from less than 2% in the Czech Republic, Spain, Latvia, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey, to more than 40% in Cyprus and Hungary.
At country level, the differences recorded between these two populations varied a lot. Indeed
About 19% of the persons aged 15-64 report having a work limitation; essentially due to personal or environmental factors
In 2011, about 19% of all persons between 15 and 64 years old in the EU-28 had a limitation in their work activity (see Figure 2). At country level, this percentage ranged from 10% (Ireland) to around 50% (Cyprus and Hungary).
Among the reasons for these limitations, “personal or environmental factors only” counted for 41.3% at the level of the EU-28, “longstanding health problem or a basic activity difficulty only” for 37.8% and both causes observed together counted for 20.8%.
“Personal or environmental factors only” was reported by more than 3 out of 4 persons limited in their work activity in Cyprus and Hungary. This cause was the main reason reported by a total of 13 countries while “longstanding health problem or a basic activity difficulty only” was mostly stated in the 18 other countries. With respectively 40.2% and 36.1%, Poland and Romania presented the highest rates compared to the other countries for both causes observed together regarding people limited in their work activity.
Lack of appropriate job opportunities stated by three out of ten in the EU-28
Among the personal or environmental factors leading to work limitations, “lack of appropriate job opportunities” counted for 30.6% at the level of the EU (see Table 1). At country level, this was mentioned by more than one person out of two in Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Greece, Lithuania, Latvia and Slovakia.
"Lack of qualifications/experience" counted for more than 25% in Bulgaria, Austria, Iceland and Finland, while "Family/carrying responsibilities" was reported by 38.1% of the persons in Ireland.
Limitation in working activities due to family/caring responsibilities: expectedly more a matter of women
Regarding gender specificities, women were much more concerned by “family/carrying responsibilities” than men in terms of work limitations due to personal or environmental reasons (see Figure 3). Indeed, more than 27% of women were concerned by this reason against 6.2% for men. This situation is especially marked in Iceland and in Ireland with respective shares of 41.6% and 56.1% for women (data not shown).
Conversely, more than one out of three men declared “lack of appropriate job opportunities” among main personal or environmental reasons causing a limitation in working activities. It can be noticed that in Latvia, this main reason was the unique one declared by males; while “lack of qualifications/experience” reached 42% among men in Iceland (against 18.9% at EU-28 level).
With age, different factors are stated'
At the EU-28 level, the youngest most often state the “lack of qualifications/experience” (35.6%), while more than three out of ten aged between 25 and 44 declared having limitations due to the “lack of appropriate job opportunities” (see Figure 3). For persons aged 45-64, the main reason for work limitation mentioned was “Other personal or environmental reasons”.
At country level, different situations were observed. Indeed, “lack of appropriate job opportunities” was declared by more than 60% of persons aged 15-24 in Greece and Italy, while 53.5% of persons aged 25-34 in Iceland declared “Family/carrying responsibilities” as personal or environmental reason (data not shown). Moreover, the unique reason declared in Bulgaria, Croatia and Estonia among persons aged 45-64 was “lack of appropriate job opportunities”.
Longstanding health problems hindering work
Of particular interest is to see for each kind of limitation (in the type of work, amount of work, and getting to and from work) whether its nature is caused (totally or partly) by the longstanding health problem or difficulties in basic activities. At EU-28 level, a limitation in the type of work was declared by more than 9 out of 10 persons having a work limitation caused by a LHAPD. The amount of work and getting to and from work caused a limitation to a less extent (66.0%, respectively 37.4% - data not shown).
For about 50% of the persons limited in the type of work, this limitation was caused by a longstanding health problem only (see Table 2). The longstanding health problem was also the main reason for limitation in the amount of work (for almost 50% of the population with work limitation caused by a LHPAD). Otherwise, “both a longstanding health problem and a basic activity difficulty” were declared together by 46.9% of persons as the main causes of their limitation in getting to and from work.
At country level, “longstanding health problem only” was the most frequently reported cause in thirteen Member States, Iceland and Switzerland irrespective of the kind of limitation. In Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Poland and Portugal, this cause was reported by more than 60% of persons for the three aforementioned limitations of work. Moreover, “both a longstanding health problem and a basic activity difficulty” was the most often reported category in nine Member States and in Turkey. With more than 63%, the highest rates for the three limitations were observed in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Turkey.
Conversely, in Austria, Malta, Latvia and Slovenia, the frequency of persons having declared “limited only by the basic activity difficulty” was significantly higher than the rate reported at EU-28 level for the three limitations of work. A similar situation is shown for Croatia, but the rate should be considered cautiously, as it is unreliable (flagged “u” in Table 2) due to the small sample size.
Data sources and availability
The main data source used for this article is the European Labour Force Survey (EU-LFS). It is a quarterly, large sample survey providing results for the population in private households in the EU, Turkey, Iceland, and Switzerland.
The EU-LFS included an ad-hoc module on employment of disabled people in 2002 and 2011. The aim of this module was to provide information on the situation of disabled people on the labour market as compared to those without disabilities.
Concepts and definitions
Two main concepts of disability are used in this article:
- Longstanding health problems or diseases: longstanding is to be understood as a health problem that has lasted or is likely to last for at least 6 months. The main characteristic of a longstanding problem is that it is permanent and may be expected to require a long period of supervision, observation or care.
- Basic activity difficulty: an activity is defined as the performance of a task or action by an individual and thus basic activity difficulties are defined as difficulties in performing a basic activity (such as seeing, hearing, lifting, bending, etc) by the respondent. The length of difficulty must have lasted or be expected to last for six months or more.
Context
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizes in Article 27 “the right of persons with disabilities to work, on an equal basis with others; this includes the right to the opportunity to gain a living by work freely chosen or accepted in a labour market and work environment that is open, inclusive and accessible to persons with disabilities”. This includes prohibition of discrimination, protection of rights, access to education, employment in the public and private sector, possibilities for self-employment and support in order to maintain employment on equal terms with others. The OECD acknowledged as far back as 1992 that: “A need for more co-ordination of all policies which affect the labour market participation of people with disabilities is an overriding concern”. The national reports on the employment of disabled people in European countries provide evidence of widespread initiatives in policy and legislation in recent years. These include, for example, the right to an interview (e.g. in Poland and Denmark), assistance in adaptation of the workplace, employer incentives/subsidies, rights to flexible working, job matching, personal assistance at work, support for self-employment, etc. Although many initiatives have been taken, and more focus has been given to the integration of disabled people, more can be done. There is thus still a need for more knowledge, and more co-ordination in the area. Indeed, there is a relative lack of information about the types of jobs and sectors that disabled people are employed in, not least because many disabled people employed in the ordinary labour market are not recognised or measured in reported figures, e.g. because they are not recorded as having work limitations or receiving specific support services.
See also
Further Eurostat information
Publications
- Statistical analysis and publication of the results of the 2011 Labour Force Survey ad hoc module on employment of disabled people
Database
- Disability, see:
- Access to labour market for disabled people (Source LFS) (hlth_dsb_lm)
Dedicated section
- Health, see
- Disability
Methodology / Metadata
- Prevalence of disability (source LFS) (hlth_dsb_prv)
- Background articles in Statistics Explained
Other information
- Commission Regulation (EU) No 317/2010 of 16 April 2010 adopting the specifications of the 2011 ad hoc module on employment of disabled people for the labour force sample survey provided for by Council Regulation (EC) No 577/98
External links
- European Disability Strategy 2010-2020
- The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)
- United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD)
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