Jobs Report April 2016 : Positive News for People with Disabilities after Months of Decline

Kessler Foundation and University of New Hampshire release April 'nTIDE' Report – Monthly Update DURHAM, NH – Two major economic indicators increased for people with disabilities, according to today's National Trends in Disability Employment – Monthly Update (nTIDE), issued by Kessler Foundation and University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability (UNH-IOD). May is Stroke Awareness Month, which focuses our attention on this major cause of disability, and the need for vocational research to determine optimal ways to overcome barriers to employment after stroke.

In the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Jobs Report released Friday, May 6, the employment-to-population ratio for working-age people with disabilities increased from 27.0 percent in April 2015 to 27.9 percent in April 2016 (up 3.3 percent; 0.9 percentage points). For working-age people without disabilities, the employment-to-population ratio increased only slightly from 72.2 percent in April 2015 to 72.6 percent in April 2016 (up 0.6 percent; 0.4 percentage points). The employment-to-population ratio, a key indicator, reflects the percentage of people who are working relative to the total population (the number of people working divided by the number of people in the total population multiplied by 100). “The employment-to-population ratio for people with disabilities showed improvement this month compared to the same month last year,” according to John O’Neill, Ph.D., Director of Employment and Disability Research at Kessler Foundation. “This is truly positive news considering the decline in this metric over the first three months this year. Let’s hope that this positive news continues. Interested in learning more about today’s results? Come listen in to our new Lunch & Learn webinar series, today, May 6 at 12:00PM EST. Join us live or watch the recordings later at www.ResearchonDisability.org/nTIDE.” Read more > Trends in Disability Employment - National Update is funded, in part, by a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) under grant number 90RT5022-02-01,and Kessler Foundation.