Disability & Employment in the USA: National Overview based on 2000 Census
by Andrew Houtenville (Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) for Economic Research on Employment Policy for Persons with Disabilities at Cornell University)
From the U.S. Census 2000 comes the following data on disability, broken down by age groups. (Note that 'population' has a specific designation: individuals who are civilians not living in institutions.)
Persons 5 to 20 years old: The overall population aged 5 to 20 years is 64,689,357 persons, of whom 5,214,334 (or 8.1 percent) are persons with disabilities.
Persons 21 to 64 years old: The overall population aged 21 to 64 years is 159,131,544 persons, of whom 30,553,796 (or 19.2 percent) are persons with disabilities.
Persons 65 years old and over: The overall population aged 65 years and over is 33,346,626 persons, of whom 13,978,118 (or 41.9 percent) are persons with disabilities.
Employment
Of the 30,553,796 individuals with disabilities who are in the 'working-age population'(the group from 21 to 64 years old), 56.6 are employed.
In comparison, of the 128,577,748 working-age persons without disabilities, 77.2 percent are employed.
In the Census Survey, disability is defined on the basis of the following questions:
Does this person have any of the following longlasting conditions:
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Blindness, deafness, or a severe vision or hearing impairment?
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A condition that substantially limits one or more basic physical activities such as walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting, or carrying?
Because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition lasting 6 months or more, does this person have any difficulty in doing any of the following activities:
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Learning, remembering, or concentrating?
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Dressing, bathing, or getting around inside the home?
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(Answer if this person is 16 YEARS OLD OR OVER.) Going outside the home alone to shop or visit a doctor's office?
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(Answer if this person is 16 YEARS OLD OR OVER.) Working at a job or business?
For more information in the Current Population Survey data go to http://www.census.gov/PressRelease/www/2002/demoprofiles.html
For more information on the disability statistics maintained by Cornell University's Rehabilitation Research and Training Center for Economic Research on Employment Policy for Persons with Disabilities, see www.disabiitystatistics.org.
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