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 in 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 (44%) and Hungary (43%).
The gap between disabled and not disabled people regarding limitations in work in relation with personal or environmental factors was the widest in Poland (62 percentage points) and Romania (61 pp), followed by the United Kingdom (47 pp), Lithuania (36 pp), Belgium (33 pp) and Hungary (32 pp).
About 19% of the persons aged 15-64 reported a limitation at work
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), ranging from 10% in Ireland and 11% in both Spain and the Czech Republic to around 50% in Cyprus and Hungary. Among the reasons for these limitations, “personal or environmental factors only” counted for 41% at EU-28 level, “longstanding health problem or a basic activity difficulty only” for 38% and both causes observed together counted for 21%.
“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% and 36%, Poland and Romania presented the highest rates compared to the other countries for both causes observed together regarding people limited in their work activity.
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Lack of appropriate job opportunities stated by three out of ten in the EU-28
When investigating further the personal or environmental factors leading to work limitations, the lack of appropriate job opportunities appeared as the most frequent cause in the EU-28, quoted by 31% of the working-age population (see Table 1). At country level, this was mentioned by more than one person out of two in Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia. A lack of qualifications or experience was mentioned by more than 25% in Bulgaria, Austria and Finland, while family or carrying responsibilities was the most reported reason in Ireland (38%). Other reasons than the three mentioned previously (e.g. lack of transportation or employers' lack of flexibility) accounted all together for more than 60% of the population in Iceland, Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark.
Limitation in working activities due to family or caring responsibilities most reported by women
Among the personal or environmental reasons, the principal reason quoted by women to be limited in work was 'family/carrying responsibilities' (27%) while this reason was mentioned by only 6% of men (see Figure 3). This situation was especially marked in Iceland and in Ireland where respectively 42% and 56% of women gave this reason (data not shown).
Conversely, more than one out of three men mentioned a lack of appropriate job opportunities as the main reason causing a limitation in working activities. This was even the only reason mentioned by males in Latvia.
Reasons also differ according to the age of the interviewed person. While the youngest most often stated the lack of qualifications or experience (36%), more than three out of ten aged between 25 and 44 mentioned a lack of appropriate job opportunities and persons aged 45-64 first referred to other personal or environmental reasons (see Figure 3).
Data sources and availability
The main data source used for this article is the European Labour Force Survey. It is a quarterly, large sample survey providing results for the population in private households in the EU, Turkey, Iceland, and Switzerland.
The LFS included an ad-hoc module on employment of disabled people in 2002 and 2011. The aim of the 2011 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 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
Online publications
- Disability statistics
- EU labour force survey statistics
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
- United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD)
- European Disability Strategy 2010-2020
- The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)
[[Category:<Employment>|Disability statistics - barriers to employment]][[Category:<Health>|Disability statistics - barriers to employment]][[Category:<Labour market>|Disability statistics - barriers to employment]] [[Category:<Population>|Disability statistics - barriers to employment]] [[Category:<Statistical article>|Disability statistics - barriers to employment]]