Working conditions for employees with disabilities
Published: 7 February 2006
More than 500 million people in the world have a disability, according to the United Nations (UN). Their entitlement to the same rights and equal opportunities are often hindered, as physical and social barriers often put them at a disadvantage. A recent survey, conducted by Statistics Sweden on behalf of the National Labour Market Board (Arbetsmarknadsstyrelsen, AMS), reveals that approximately 16% of all employed people have one or more disabilities. Among these, 47% consider that their ability to work is reduced. A higher proportion of women (51%) than men (44%) take this view.
Every sixth employed person has one or more disabilities, a recent survey reveals. Almost half of them consider their ability to work to be reduced.
More than 500 million people in the world have a disability, according to the United Nations (UN). Their entitlement to the same rights and equal opportunities are often hindered, as physical and social barriers often put them at a disadvantage. A recent survey, conducted by Statistics Sweden on behalf of the National Labour Market Board (Arbetsmarknadsstyrelsen, AMS), reveals that approximately 16% of all employed people have one or more disabilities. Among these, 47% consider that their ability to work is reduced. A higher proportion of women (51%) than men (44%) take this view.
The survey is based on self-reported disabilities and experiences of the situation. It makes a distinction between being disabled and being disabled with a reduced ability to work.
The single largest group (34%) of employed women with disabilities work as service workers and shop sales workers (referring to the Swedish Standard Classification of Occupations). For men, a large group (24%) of those employed with disabilities can be found in the category of craft and related trades workers. The most common type of disabilities for both men and women is motor disabilities followed by asthma/allergies or other hypersensitivities.
Adaptation of working conditions
More than seven out of 10 employed disabled persons with reduced ability to work report that their working conditions need to be adapted. Of these, 31% need one adaptation in order to carry out their present job, 26% require two adaptations, 20% need three adaptations, 15% require four adaptations, and 7.5% need five or six adaptations. The most common types of adaptation required are: adaptation of task, adapted technical aids, adaptation of work pace or of working time. A statistically significant greater number of women than men need to adapt their working time and work pace, as indicated in Table 1.
| Type of adaptation | Men | Women | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tasks | 36.8 | 39.7 | 38.4 |
| Work pace | 30.2 | 39.2 | 35.0 |
| Working time | 26.1 | 41.9 | 34.5 |
| Technical aids | 18.8 | 24.0 | 21.6 |
Source: Statistics Sweden, 2005
Discrimination and harassment
The survey reveals that every fifth employed person with reduced ability to work has experienced discrimination in the workplace, in one form or another, due to their disability. That is, 21% of all employed persons with disabilities and reduced ability to work have answered yes to at least one of the questions on discrimination (referring to the period 1999-2004). For those without reduced ability to work, the corresponding figure is 5%. Table 2 shows that employed people with disability and reduced ability to work perceive that they are discriminated against to a greater extent than other employed people with disabilities.
| Type of discrimination and harassment | Employed with disability | Employed with disability and reduced ability to work |
|---|---|---|
| Passed over due to disability when applying for promotion | 2.2 | 3.7 |
| Unfairly treated in the setting of wage rates | 4.5 | 8.5 |
| Not been able to participate in training since it was not adapted to their disabilities | 3.0 | 5.1 |
| Have been bullied, harassed or offended | 4.9 | 8.4 |
Source: Statistics Sweden, 2005
About the study
The survey is carried out every two years by Statistics Sweden on behalf of the National Labour Market Board (Arbetsmarknadsstyrelsen, AMS). The pilot study was in 1996, and the most recent survey was carried out during the last quarter of 2004, as a supplement to the national labour force survey.
The survey’s definition of disabilities derives from the UN’s Standard Rules and includes: problems with sight, hearing, speech or voice, motor disabilities, allergies, or any form of psychological illness. It also includes diabetes, heart and/or lung problems, stomach/intestine illness, psoriasis, epilepsy, dyslexia or something similar.
The definition is read to the interviewees; subsequently, they are asked an introductory question to determine whether they, using this definition, belonged to the group with disabilities. Of 29,816 persons, 5,160 answered that they belonged to this group.
Reference
Funktionshindrades situation på arbetsmarknaden 2004 [The labour market situation of persons with disabilities] (775Kb pdf; in Swedish), Statistics Sweden, 2005
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2006), Working conditions for employees with disabilities, article.
This website is an official website of the European Union.
All official European Union website addresses are in the europa.eu domain.
See all EU institutions and bodies