How many are employed?

Employment is linked not only to income and economic security, but also to other aspects of a person’s wellbeing. Problems with finding or keeping employment can, for example, affect a person’s standard of living as well as have broader impacts on their family and the wider community.

What is meant by economic security?

Economic security is having a stable income or other resources to support a standard of living and cover essential needs, both now and in the immediate future.

Over 1 million working-age (aged 15–64) people with disability participate in the labour force through work or looking for work. But some people with disability face challenges seeking and engaging in employment. This is reflected in their lower rates of labour force participation and employment, higher rates of unemployment and longer duration of unemployment.

Table EMPLOYMENT.1: Selected measures of employment, by disability status

Selected measures of employment

Working-age people with disability(a)

Working-age people without disability(a)

Labour force participation rate

53%

83%

Employment rate

48%

79%

Unemployment rate

10%

5%

Unemployed for at least 1 year(b)

30%

14%

Employed full time(c)

56%

68%

Employed part time(c)

44%

32%

Underemployed(c)

11%

8.1%

(a) Living in households (2015).

(b) 52 weeks or more.

(c) Percentage of those employed.

Labour force participation rate

The labour force participation rate is the sum of the working-age population who are employed or unemployed and looking for work as a percentage of the working-age population.

Employment rate

The employment rate (employment-to-population ratio) is the sum of the working-age population who are employed as a percentage of the working-age population.

Unemployment rate

The unemployment rate is the sum of the working-age population who are unemployed and looking for work (who are available to start work) as a percentage of the working-age population participating in the labour force.

Underemployment

A person is considered underemployed if they are employed, usually work 34 hours or less a week, would like a job with more hours, and are available to start work with more hours if offered a job in the next 4 weeks.

Most employed (88%) and unemployed (80%) working-age people with disability do not require additional support from their employer to work. Similarly, 83% of employed working age people with disability do not need time off from work because of their condition(s).

How difficult is it to find work?

Most (95%) working-age people with disability who are unemployed or not in the labour force report at least 1 difficulty finding work. The most common reason is their ill health or disability (44%). This is followed by too many applicants for available jobs (25%), lacked necessary skills or education (23%), and insufficient work experience (18%).