RESEARCH Business Labor

DISABILITY
Discrimination not uncommon in years following ADA passage

Craig Chamberlain, Education Editor
(217) 333-2894; cdchambe@uiuc.edu

9/1/2001

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Ending workplace discrimination against people with disabilities was a key aim of the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990.

But it wasn't a silver bullet, at least early on, according to Jae Kennedy and Marjorie Olney, both professors of community health at the University of Illinois.

In an article being published this month in the journal Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin, Kennedy and Olney estimate that almost 10 percent of working adults with disabilities faced job discrimination in the early 1990s, despite ADA protections. That translates to about 1.6 million people who believed they experienced discrimination "due to their health, impairment or disability status," the authors said.

Their estimates come from a supplement to the 1994-95 National Health Interview Survey, an ongoing survey of U.S. households run by the Centers for Disease Control. The NHIS is widely regarded as the most comprehensive source of national data on many health issues, the authors noted.

The supplement provided "an unprecedented level of detail on disability-related issues," Kennedy said. "And as far as I'm aware, these are the first nationally representative estimates of workplace discrimination for persons with disabilities."

The authors' study was based on responses from 9,843 adults with disabilities who were currently working or had worked during the previous five years (1989-1994). Respondents were asked if, during those years, they had been refused employment, a promotion, a transfer or access to training programs because of an ongoing health problem, impairment or disability.

Those reporting discrimination were much more likely to have work limitations, Kennedy noted. They also tended to be younger, poorer and in poorer health. And about a third had permanently left the workforce since the incidents of perceived discrimination.

Kennedy acknowledged there are limitations in a survey that asks people to self-identify discrimination, since respondents cannot be sure how their disability factored into adverse outcomes. "But these estimates are probably on the low side, since people who experience discrimination may not make the connection," he said.

There are numerous factors keeping two-thirds of people with disabilities out of the workforce, Kennedy noted. "It's not just discrimination that's causing the problem." Yet he also noted that "most people with disabilities could work" if given appropriate supports and training.

The authors' research was funded by a grant from the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research.