The Employment Situation for People with Disabilities

Some people with disabilities – around 8 percent – do not work in the primary labour market, but in sheltered workshops. The situation varies considerably from region to region. In Baden-Württemberg, nearly every second person with a severe disability is gainfully employed, whereas in Saxony-Anhalt this is true for only one in four. Other things being equal, the greater the degree of disability, the lower the likelihood of gainful employment. In the primary labour market, net earned incomes for the severely disabled are little different from those without a disability. Further research is needed to establish why so many of the disabled have no interest in employment.