Persons with a Disability: Labor Force Characteristics News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Thursday, February 24, 2022 			  USDL-22-0317

Technical information:  (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps 
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


           PERSONS WITH A DISABILITY: LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS -- 2021


In 2021, 19.1 percent of persons with a disability were employed, up from 17.9 percent
in 2020, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. For persons without a disability,
63.7 percent were employed in 2021, up from 61.8 percent in the prior year. The
unemployment rates for persons with and without a disability both declined from 2020
to 2021, to 10.1 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively. Data for both groups reflect
the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the labor market.

Data on persons with a disability are collected as part of the Current Population Survey
(CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that provides statistics on
employment and unemployment in the United States. Collection of the data on persons with
a disability is sponsored by the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment
Policy. For more information, see the Technical Note in this news release.

Highlights from the 2021 data:

 --Half of all persons with a disability were age 65 and over, nearly three times larger
   than the share for those with no disability. (See table 1.)

 --Across all age groups, persons with disabilities were much less likely to be employed
   than those with no disabilities. (See table 1.)

 --Across all educational attainment groups, unemployment rates for persons with a
   disability were higher than those for persons without a disability. (See table 1.)

 --In 2021, 29 percent of workers with a disability were employed part time, compared
   with 16 percent for those with no disability. (See table 2.)

 --Employed persons with a disability were more likely to be self-employed than those
   with no disability. (See table 4.)

Demographic characteristics

In 2021, persons with a disability accounted for 11.9 percent of the civilian noninstitutional
population. Persons with a disability tend to be older than persons with no disability,
reflecting the increased incidence of disability with age. In 2021, half of persons with
a disability were age 65 and over, compared with 18 percent of those with no disability.
Overall, women were somewhat more likely to have a disability than men, partly reflecting 
the greater life expectancy of women. In 2021, the prevalence of disability continued to
be higher for Blacks and Whites than for Hispanics and Asians. (See table 1.)

Employment

The employment-population ratio--that is, the percent of the population that is employed--
for persons with a disability increased by 1.2 percentage points from the prior year to 
19.1 percent in 2021. This was nearly the same ratio as in 2019 (19.3 percent), before
the impact of the pandemic. The ratio for those without a disability, at 63.7 percent in
2021, increased by 1.9 percentage points over the year but was 2.6 percentage points 
lower than in 2019. The lower ratio among persons with a disability reflects, in part,
the older age profile of persons with a disability; older workers are less likely to be
employed, regardless of disability status. However, across all age groups, persons with
a disability were much less likely to be employed than those with no disability. (See
tables A and 1.)

In 2021, the employment-population ratio for persons with a disability ages 16 to 64
increased to 31.4 percent, while the ratio for persons without a disability in the same
age group increased to 72.5 percent. The ratios for persons age 65 and over with a
disability (6.9 percent) and without a disability (22.3 percent) showed little or no 
change from the prior year. (See table A.)

Persons with a disability were less likely to have completed a bachelor's degree and
higher than those with no disability. Among both groups, those who had attained higher
levels of education were more likely to be employed than those who had attained less
education. Across all levels of education in 2021, persons with a disability were much
less likely to be employed than were their counterparts with no disability. (Educational
attainment data are presented for those age 25 and over.) (See table 1.)

Workers with a disability were more likely to be employed part time than those with no
disability. Among workers with a disability, 29 percent usually worked part time in 2021,
compared with 16 percent of those without a disability. The proportion of workers with
a disability who worked part time for economic reasons was higher than their counterparts
without a disability (4 percent, compared with 3 percent). These individuals were working
part time because their hours had been reduced or because they were not able to find a
full-time job. (See table 2.)

In 2021, persons with a disability were more likely to work in service occupations than
those with no disability (18.2 percent, compared with 15.9 percent). Workers with a 
disability were also more likely than those with no disability to work in production,
transportation, and material moving occupations (14.6 percent, compared with 12.6 percent)
and sales and office occupations (21.4 percent, compared with 19.7 percent). Persons
with a disability were less likely to work in management, professional, and related
occupations than those without a disability (36.5 percent, compared with 42.7 percent).
(See table 3.)

A larger share of workers with a disability were self-employed in 2021 than were those
with no disability (9.6 percent versus 6.4 percent). In contrast, a smaller share of
workers with a disability were private wage and salary workers (76.5 percent) than were
those without a disability (80.0 percent). The proportion of persons employed in government
was about the same for both persons with a disability and persons without a disability
(13.9 percent and 13.6 percent, respectively). (See table 4.)

Unemployment

The unemployment rate for persons with a disability, at 10.1 percent in 2021, decreased
by 2.5 percentage points from the previous year but remains higher than in 2019 (7.3 
percent). The jobless rate for those with a disability was about twice as high as the rate
for those without a disability. (Unemployed persons are those who did not have a job, were
available for work, and were actively looking for a job in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.)
The unemployment rate for persons without a disability decreased by 2.8 percentage points
to 5.1 percent in 2021. (See tables A and 1.)

At 10.1 percent in 2021, the unemployment rate for men with a disability was the same as
for women with a disability. The unemployment rates for both men and women with a disability
decreased from 2020 to 2021; however, both remain above their 2019 rates.

Among persons with a disability, the jobless rates for Blacks (15.1 percent) and Hispanics
(13.3 percent) were higher than the rates for Whites (9.3 percent) and Asians (8.5 percent)
in 2021. The rates for Whites, Asians, and Hispanics decreased from 2020 to 2021, while the
rate for Blacks showed little change. (See table 1.)

Not in the labor force

Persons who are neither employed nor unemployed are not in the labor force. A large proportion
of persons with a disability--about 8 in 10--were not in the labor force in 2021, compared
with about 3 in 10 of those with no disability. In part, this reflects the older age profile
of persons with a disability; persons age 65 and over are much less likely to participate in
the labor force than younger age groups. Across all age groups, however, persons with a 
disability were more likely to be out of the labor force than those with no disability. (See
table 1.)

For persons with and without a disability, the vast majority of those not in the labor force
reported that they do not want a job. In 2021, 3 percent of those with a disability and 7
percent of those without a disability wanted a job. Among those who do want a job, a subset
are classified as marginally attached to the labor force. These individuals wanted and were
available to work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not
counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.
(Persons marginally attached to the labor force include discouraged workers.) Less than 1 
percent of persons with a disability and about 2 percent of persons without a disability were
marginally attached to the labor force in 2021. (See table 5.)

Technical Note

   The estimates in this release are based on annual average data obtained from  
the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS, which is conducted by the U.S. 
Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is a monthly survey of 
about 60,000 eligible households that provides information on the labor force 
status, demographics, and other characteristics of the nation's civilian
noninstitutional population age 16 and over.
   
   Questions were added to the CPS in June 2008 to identify persons with a 
disability in the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over. The 
addition of these questions allowed the BLS to begin releasing monthly labor 
force data from the CPS for persons with a disability. The collection of these 
data is sponsored by the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment 
Policy.
   
   If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial
7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Reliability of the estimates

   Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling 
error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there is 
a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the true population values 
they represent. The component of this difference that occurs because samples 
differ by chance is known as sampling error, and its variability is measured 
by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or
level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more 
than 1.6 standard errors from the true population value because of sampling 
error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of 
confidence.

   The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can 
occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the 
population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the sample, 
inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, and
errors made in the collection or processing of the data.

   Additional information about the reliability of data from the CPS and 
estimating standard errors is available at 
www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability.

   CPS estimates are controlled to population totals that are available by 
age, sex, race, and Hispanic ethnicity. These controls are developed by the 
Census Bureau and are based on complete population counts obtained in the 
decennial census. In the years between decennial censuses, they incorporate 
the latest information about population change (births, deaths, and net
international migration). As part of its annual update of population
estimates, the Census Bureau introduces adjustments to the total population
controls. The updated controls typically have a negligible impact on 
unemployment rates and other ratios. The estimates of the population of 
persons with a disability are not controlled to independent population totals 
of persons with a disability because such data are not available. Without 
independent population totals, sample-based estimates are more apt to vary 
from one time period to the next.  Information about population controls is 
available at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#pop.

Disability questions and concepts

   The CPS uses a set of six questions to identify persons with disabilities. 
In the CPS, persons are classified as having a disability if there is a response 
of "yes" to any of these questions. The disability questions appear in the CPS 
in the following format:

   This month we want to learn about people who have physical, mental, or emotional
conditions that cause serious difficulty with their daily activities. Please answer
for household members who are 15 years old or over.

   --Is anyone deaf or does anyone have serious difficulty 
     hearing?

   --Is anyone blind or does anyone have serious difficulty
     seeing even when wearing glasses?

   --Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, does
     anyone have serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or
     making decisions?

   --Does anyone have serious difficulty walking or climbing
     stairs?

   --Does anyone have difficulty dressing or bathing?

   --Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition, does
     anyone have difficulty doing errands alone such as visiting a
     doctor's office or shopping?

   The CPS questions for identifying individuals with disabilities are only 
asked of household members who are age 15 and over. Each of the questions ask 
the respondent whether anyone in the household has the condition described, and 
if the respondent replies "yes," they are then asked to identify everyone in 
the household who has the condition. Labor force measures from the CPS are 
tabulated for persons age 16 and over. More information on the disability 
questions and the limitations of the CPS disability data is available on the 
BLS website at www.bls.gov/cps/cpsdisability_faq.htm.

Other definitions

   Other definitions used in this release are described briefly below. 
Additional information on the concepts and methodology of the CPS is available 
at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm.

   Employed.  Employed persons are all those who, during the survey reference 
week, (a) did any work at all as paid employees; (b) worked in their own 
business, profession, or on their own farm; or (c) worked 15 hours or more as 
unpaid workers in a family member's business.  Persons who were temporarily 
absent from their jobs because of illness, bad weather, vacation, labor 
dispute, or another reason also are counted as employed.

   Unemployed.  Unemployed persons are those who had no employment during the 
reference week, were available for work at that time, and had made specific 
efforts to find employment sometime during the 4-week period ending with the 
reference week. Persons who were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they 
had been laid off need not have been looking for work to be classified as 
unemployed.

   Civilian labor force.  The civilian labor force comprises all persons 
classified as employed or unemployed.

   Unemployment rate.  The unemployment rate represents the number of 
unemployed persons as a percent of the civilian labor force.

   Not in the labor force.  Persons not in the labor force include all those who 
are not classified as employed or unemployed. Information is collected on their 
desire for and availability to take a job at the time of the CPS interview, job 
search activity in the prior year, and reason for not looking in the 4-week 
period ending with the reference week. This group includes individuals marginally 
attached to the labor force, defined as persons not in the labor force who want 
and are available for a job and who have looked for work sometime in the past 12 
months (or since the end of their last job if they held one within the past 12 
months). They are not counted as unemployed because they had not actively searched 
for work in the prior 4 weeks. Within the marginally attached group are discouraged 
workers--persons who are not currently looking for work because they believe there 
are no jobs available or there are none for which they would qualify. The other 
persons marginally attached to the labor force group includes persons who want 
a job but had not looked for work in the past 4 weeks for reasons such as family 
responsibilities or transportation problems.

   Part time for economic reasons.  Persons classified as at work part time for 
economic reasons, a measure sometimes referred to as involuntary part time, are 
those who gave an economic reason for working 1 to 34 hours during the reference 
week. Economic reasons include slack work or unfavorable business conditions, 
inability to find full-time work, and seasonal declines in demand. Those who 
usually work part time must also indicate that they want and are available for 
full-time work to be classified as part time for economic reasons.

   Occupation, industry, and class of worker.  The occupation, industry, and 
class of worker classifications for the employed relate to the job held in the 
survey reference week. Persons with two or more jobs are classified in the job 
at which they worked the greatest number of hours. Persons are classified using 
the 2018 Census occupational and 2017 Census industry classification systems. 
The class-of-worker breakdown assigns workers to the following categories: 
private and government wage and salary workers, self-employed workers, and 
unpaid family workers. Wage and salary workers receive wages, salary, 
commissions, tips, or pay in kind from a private employer or from a government 
unit. Self-employed persons are those who work for profit or fees in their own 
business, profession, trade, or farm. Only the unincorporated self-employed are 
included in the self-employed category. Self-employed persons who respond that 
their businesses are incorporated are included among wage and salary workers. 
Unpaid family workers are persons working without pay for 15 hours a week or 
more on a farm or in a business operated by a family member in their household.