Celebrating Pride Month
In recognition of Pride Month, RespectAbility celebrates the diversity and positive impact the LGBTQ+ community adds to the United States. At the same time, we recognize that the data shows that full equity for the LGBTQ+ community in public life has yet to be achieved. This is of particular importance to the disability community, because there is tremendous intersection between the disability and LGBTQ+ communities.
According to a Gallup poll, the number of adults identifying as LGBTQ+ in America is 7.1% (approximately 23.5 million people), double what the data showed in 2012. At the same time, only 13 members of the U.S. Congress identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community: 2 senators out of 100, and 11 out of the 435 (2.5%) members of the House of Representatives. This means that the LGBTQ+ community is markedly underrepresented in the halls of power.
Even as we wait for and work toward better representation, we must also work to ensure that those in power right now represent and listen to the needs of communities historically left out of the conversation. This applies especially to those who are multiply marginalized, like people at the intersection of the disability and LGBTQ+ communities. According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), 36% of LGBTQ+ adults self-report as having a disability, and 52% of transgender adults in particular self-report a disability, compared to 24% of non-LGBTQ+ adults who self-report a disability.
LGBTQ+ people with disabilities face extra barriers, and we must recognize and create space for them to share their lived experience so that society can learn to be more inclusive.
Employment for People with Disabilities
As usual, we examined this month’s National Trends In Disability Employment (nTIDE) report tracking employment for people with disabilities.
In May 2023, the labor force participation rate for people with disabilities rose to 40.2% compared to 37.2% in May 2022. This matches an all-time high participation rate for people with disabilities as we work towards closing the gap between workers with and without disabilities. Workers without disabilities also experienced an uptick in the labor force participation rate, which rose from 77.2% in May 2022 to 77.6% in May 2023.
Likewise, the employment-to-population ratio for people with disabilities rose from 34.3% in May 2022 to 36.9% in May 2023. This was a bigger improvement than for those without disabilities, whose employment-to-population ratio increased from 74.7% to 75%.
The month-to-month data, likewise, showed an increase in the labor force participation rate for people with disabilities from 38.3% in April 2023 to 40.2% in May 2023. Those without disabilities also increased slightly in the labor force participation rate, rising to 77.6% in May 2023 from 77.4% in April 2023.
The month-to-month employment-to-population ratio for people with disabilities rose to 36.9% in May 2023 from 35.6% in April 2023. On the other hand, workers without disabilities’ employment-to-population ratio fell from 75.1% in April 2023 to 75% in May 2023.
So far in 2023, we’ve seen positive employment data for people with disabilities, and we celebrate and acknowledge these achievements. But it is vital that we see these improvements as the start of our work, not the end of it. We encourage our readers that support us to share this content on social media so that all can be aware of what we still need to achieve.
Payroll & Unemployment Rate
According to the newest U.S. payroll employment report, the number of paid U.S. workers in all businesses, excluding those working on farms, serving in the military, volunteers, and unpaid workers in the home, rose by 339,000.
According to the DOL‘s disability employment statistics, the unemployment rate for people without a disability was steady at 3.2%, within the range of 3-5% deemed healthy by most economists. However, the unemployment rate amongst those with a disability is about 2.6 times higher, at 8.3%.
It is notable that the unemployment rate for people with disabilities rose from 7.8% in April 2023 to 8.3% in May 2023. This is yet another reminder that while some progress has been made, there is plenty more work to be done to encourage meaningful employment so that all people have a significant job that improves their quality of life.
