Statistics on Jobs for People with Disabilities

Data from the 2018 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium shows that while Americans with disabilities are entering the workforce in greater numbers, serious gaps in employment exist between different states. If you want to know how your state is doing on jobs for people with disabilities, the tables on this page are an easy way to find out. For more information on the data, you can read our press release.

50 States Ranked by Disability Employment Rates in 2017
State Ranking	State	Total # of Working-Age PWDs	# of Working-Age PWDs Employed	Disability Employment Rate	PWDs Job Gains and Losses
	U.S.	20,444,249	7,572,805	37	111,804
1	ND	37,320	21,019	56.3	-2267
2	SD	49,546	25,419	51.3	-904
3	UT	150,964	74,754	49.5	-13
4	NE	112,418	55,391	49.3	2068
5	MN	305,082	145,697	47.8	617
6	VT	47,113	22,234	47.2	1728
7	KS	191,769	89,069	46.4	4807
8	MT	69,553	31,935	45.9	-1484
9	IA	170,186	77,746	45.7	-2670
10	WY	41,825	19,063	45.6	578
11	CO	311,449	141,691	45.5	10033
12	AK	53,087	23,815	44.9	-275
13	ID	125,743	54,948	43.7	4858
14	HI	59,469	25,546	43	-810
15	NH	84,234	36,069	42.8	-676
16	MD	335,461	141,870	42.3	4353
17	WI	339,267	142,285	41.9	-1441
18	VA	500,771	204,103	40.8	10471
19	RI	75,806	30,787	40.6	7758
20	WA	480,828	194,948	40.5	1156
21	CT	189,419	76,096	40.2	1381
22	NV	183,918	73,968	40.2	-9485
23	TX	1,622,962	647,977	39.9	3796
24	IN	477,660	184,343	38.6	8964
25	IL	691,453	263,464	38.1	20681
26	OR	288,493	109,027	37.8	-9887
27	MA	396,597	149,633	37.7	-1014
28	NJ	428,932	161,729	37.7	2154
29	OK	339,773	127,608	37.6	4040
30	PA	880,799	329,760	37.4	6406
31	MO	463,964	172,283	37.1	8040
32	DE	52,947	19,576	37	-708
33	OH	840,199	309,665	36.9	4725
34	AZ	428,198	156,194	36.5	5,760
35	CA	1,980,677	721,536	36.4	19745
36	ME	112,442	39,424	35.1	3067
37	GA	661,498	227,895	34.5	-8682
38	NY	1,099,574	378,951	34.5	11473
39	FL	1,258,361	428,638	34.1	23953
40	LA	361,642	122,683	33.9	2240
41	MI	727,451	246,196	33.8	-8138
42	NC	689,612	232,875	33.8	-16355
43	NM	169,264	57,005	33.7	7921
44	TN	538,061	179,049	33.3	4679
45	SC	376,889	122,789	32.6	-6977
46	AR	285,023	87,920	30.8	2473
47	KY	430,265	129,954	30.2	-3972
48	MS	265,344	73,203	27.6	-2875
49	AL	418,429	112,030	26.8	-3,769
50	WV	188,696	49,199	26.1	-4173

Disability Employment Statistics for Working-Age People with Disabilities in 2017
State	Total # of Working-Age PWDs	Disability Employment
		Count	%
U.S.	20,444,249	7,572,805	37
AL	418,429	112,030	26.8
AK	53,087	23,815	44.9
AZ	428,198	156,194	36.5
AR	285,023	87,920	30.8
CA	1,980,677	721,536	36.4
CO	311,449	141,691	45.5
CT	189,419	76,096	40.2
DE	52,947	19,576	37
FL	1,258,361	428,638	34.1
GA	661,498	227,895	34.5
HI	59,469	25,546	43
ID	125,743	54,948	43.7
IL	691,453	263,464	38.1
IN	477,660	184,343	38.6
IA	170,186	77,746	45.7
KS	191,769	89,069	46.4
KY	430,265	129,954	30.2
LA	361,642	122,683	33.9
ME	112,442	39,424	35.1
MD	335,461	141,870	42.3
MA	396,597	149,633	37.7
MI	727,451	246,196	33.8
MN	305,082	145,697	47.8
MS	265,344	73,203	27.6
MO	463,964	172,283	37.1
MT	69,553	31,935	45.9
NE	112,418	55,391	49.3
NV	183,918	73,968	40.2
NH	84,234	36,069	42.8
NJ	428,932	161,729	37.7
NM	169,264	57,005	33.7
NY	1,099,574	378,951	34.5
NC	689,612	232,875	33.8
ND	37,320	21,019	56.3
OH	840,199	309,665	36.9
OK	339,773	127,608	37.6
OR	288,493	109,027	37.8
PA	880,799	329,760	37.4
RI	75,806	30,787	40.6
SC	376,889	122,789	32.6
SD	49,546	25,419	51.3
TN	538,061	179,049	33.3
TX	1,622,962	647,977	39.9
UT	150,964	74,754	49.5
VT	47,113	22,234	47.2
VA	500,771	204,103	40.8
WA	480,828	194,948	40.5
WV	188,696	49,199	26.1
WI	339,267	142,285	41.9
WY	41,825	19,063	45.6

Ranking of States Best to Worst Employment for People with Disabilities in 2017
1	ND	56.3
2	SD	51.3
3	UT	49.5
4	NE	49.3
5	MN	47.8
6	VT	47.2
7	KS	46.4
8	MT	45.9
9	IA	45.7
10	WY	45.6
11	CO	45.5
12	AK	44.9
13	ID	43.7
14	HI	43
15	NH	42.8
16	MD	42.3
17	WI	41.9
18	VA	40.8
19	RI	40.6
20	WA	40.5
21	CT	40.2
22	NV	40.2
23	TX	39.9
24	IN	38.6
25	IL	38.1
26	OR	37.8
27	MA	37.7
28	NJ	37.7
29	OK	37.6
30	PA	37.4
31	MO	37.1
32	DE	37
33	OH	36.9
34	AZ	36.5
35	CA	36.4
36	ME	35.1
37	GA	34.5
38	NY	34.5
39	FL	34.1
40	LA	33.9
41	MI	33.8
42	NC	33.8
43	NM	33.7
44	TN	33.3
45	SC	32.6
46	AR	30.8
47	KY	30.2
48	MS	27.6
49	AL	26.8
50	WV	26.1

Job Gains and Losses for People With and Without Disabilities in 2017
State
	2017# of PWDs Employed	2016 # of PWDs Employed	PWDs Job Gains and Losses	2017 # of non-PWDs Employed	2016  # of non-PWDs Employed	non-PWDs Job Gains and Losses
U.S.	7,572,805	7,461,001	111,804	136,960,269	135,089,199	1871070
AL	112,030	115,799	-3,769	1815887	1,825,440	-9,553
AK	23,815	24,090	-275	300,380	309,682	-9,302
AZ	156,194	150,434	5,760	2,757,032	2,684,035	72,997
AR	87,920	85,447	2473	1,121,274	1,111,661	9,613
CA	721,536	701,791	19745	16,961,551	16,632,184	329,367
CO	141,691	131,658	10033	2,565,435	2,513,698	51,737
CT	76,096	74,715	1381	1,582,806	1,596,352	-13546
DE	19,576	20,284	-708	382,889	390,409	-7520
FL	428,638	404,685	23953	8,380,911	8,177,300	203611
GA	227,895	236,577	-8682	4,329,722	4,227,892	101830
HI	25,546	26,356	-810	597,818	602,358	-4540
ID	54,948	50,090	4858	672,032	662,021	10011
IL	263,464	242,783	20681	5,551,933	5,604,115	-52182
IN	184,343	175,379	8964	2,778,797	2,782,195	-3398
IA	77,746	80,416	-2670	1,409,244	1,401,585	7659
KS	89,069	84,262	4807	1,234,266	1,227,313	6953
KY	129,954	133,926	-3972	1,711,997	1,689,336	22661
LA	122,683	120,443	2240	1,765,230	1,767,458	-2228
ME	39,424	36,357	3067	567,638	566,378	1260
MD	141,870	137,517	4353	2,733,682	2,716,777	16905
MA	149,633	150,647	-1014	3,167,434	3,148,274	19160
MI	246,196	254,334	-8138	4,106,166	4,042,733	63433
MN	145,697	145,080	617	2,602,221	2,576,753	25468
MS	73,203	76,078	-2875	1,070,889	1,074,318	-3429
MO	172,283	164,243	8040	2,536,645	2,521,381	15264
MT	31,935	33,419	-1484	442,802	431,126	11676
NE	55,391	53,323	2068	869,515	855,042	14473
NV	73,968	83,453	-9485	1,264,395	1,211,522	52873
NH	36,069	36,745	-676	630,403	621,838	8565
NJ	161,729	159,575	2154	4,013,232	3,936,933	76299
NM	57,005	49,084	7921	751,217	767,544	-16327
NY	378,951	367,478	11473	8,610,618	8,522,611	88007
NC	232,875	249,230	-16355	4,225,322	4,101,199	124123
ND	21,019	23,286	-2267	355,450	354,090	1360
OH	309,665	304,940	4725	4,867,703	4,843,788	23915
OK	127,608	123,568	4040	1,502,073	1,495,651	6422
OR	109,027	118,914	-9887	1,751,754	1,696,553	55201
PA	329,760	323,354	6406	5,367,374	5,330,434	36940
RI	30,787	23,029	7758	464,968	462,612	2356
SC	122,789	129,766	-6977	1,985,199	1,936,360	48839
SD	25,419	26,323	-904	375,014	373,550	1464
TN	179,049	174,370	4679	2,734,895	2,640,999	93896
TX	647,977	644,181	3796	11,762,593	11,526,552	236041
UT	74,754	74,767	-13	1,331,953	1,287,144	44809
VT	22,234	20,506	1728	271,817	275,842	-4025
VA	204,103	193,632	10471	3,669,633	3,647,462	22171
WA	194,948	193,792	1156	3,187,621	3,093,022	94599
WV	49,199	53,372	-4173	621,100	634,749	-13649
WI	142,285	143,726	-1441	2,626,044	2,612,737	13307
WY	19,063	18,485	578	241,852	247,491	-5639

Disability Employment Rates by Race in 2017
State	Total # of Working-Age PWDs	Total # of PWDs Employed	Disability Employment Rate
U.S. – All Races	20,444,249	7,572,805	37
African Americans with Disabilities	3,262,362	934,589	28.6
Latinx Americans with Disabilities	2,887,953	1,114,614	38.6
Asian Americans with Disabilities	531,093	218,999	41.2

Top 10 States Ranked by Disability Employment Rates in 2017
State Ranking	State	Total # of Working-Age PWDs	# of PWDs Employed	Total Job Gains and Losses	Disability Employment Rate
1	ND	37,320	21,019	-2267	56.3
2	SD	49,546	25,419	-904	51.3
3	UT	150,964	74,754	-13	49.5
4	NE	112,418	55,391	2068	49.3
5	MN	305,082	145,697	617	47.8
6	VT	47,113	22,234	1728	47.2
7	KS	191,769	89,069	4807	46.4
8	MT	69,553	31,935	-1484	45.9
9	IA	170,186	77,746	-2670	45.7
10	WY	41,825	19,063	578	45.6

Disability Employment Gap in 2017
State	Employment Rate for PWDs	Employment Rate for Non-PWDs	Gap (% pts)
U.S.	37	77.2	40.2
AL	26.8	72.6	45.8
AK	44.9	75.7	30.8
AZ	36.5	75.3	38.8
AR	30.8	75.9	45.1
CA	36.4	75	38.6
CO	45.5	80.6	35.1
CT	40.2	78.1	37.9
DE	37	73.5	36.5
FL	34.1	75.6	41.5
GA	34.5	76	41.5
HI	43	78.8	35.8
ID	43.7	77.4	33.7
IL	38.1	77.6	39.5
IN	38.6	78.7	40.1
IA	45.7	82.7	37
KS	46.4	81	34.6
KY	30.2	76.3	46.1
LA	33.9	72.5	38.6
ME	35.1	81.6	46.5
MD	42.3	80.4	38.1
MA	37.7	80.2	42.5
MI	33.8	77.1	43.3
MN	47.8	84.2	36.4
MS	27.6	71.8	44.2
MO	37.1	79.8	42.7
MT	45.9	80.1	34.2
NE	49.3	85	35.7
NV	40.2	77.1	36.9
NH	42.8	83.4	40.6
NJ	37.7	78.3	40.6
NM	33.7	71.4	37.7
NY	34.5	76.2	41.7
NC	33.8	76.9	43.1
ND	56.3	84.3	28
OH	36.9	78.8	41.9
OK	37.6	76.3	38.7
OR	37.8	78	40.2
PA	37.4	78.1	40.7
RI	40.6	78.6	38
SC	32.6	76.2	43.6
SD	51.3	82.5	31.2
TN	33.3	77.5	44.2
TX	39.9	75.9	36
UT	49.5	79.7	30.2
VT	47.2	80.1	32.9
VA	40.8	79	38.2
WA	40.5	78.2	37.7
WV	26.1	70.2	44.1
WI	41.9	82.6	40.7
WY	45.6	80.3	34.7
PR	24	53	29

Change in Employment Gap in 2017
State	Gap (Between No Disability & Disability)		Gap Change (% pts)
	2016 (%)	2017 (%)
U.S.	40.8	40.2	0.6
AL	45.5	45.9	-0.4
AK	28.3	30.8	-2.6
AZ	39.7	38.8	0.8
AR	43	45	-2
CA	39.5	38.6	1.0
CO	37	35.1	1.9
CT	39.8	37.9	1.9
DE	39.9	36.5	3.4
DC	43.1	34.1	8.9
FL	42.9	41.6	1.3
GA	41.8	41.6	0.2
HI	38.7	35.8	2.8
ID	33.7	33.7	0.0
IL	42	39.5	2.5
IN	43	40.1	2.9
IA	36.6	37	-0.5
KS	35.6	34.5	1.1
KY	45	46.1	-1.1
LA	41.6	38.5	3.1
ME	47.3	46.5	0.7
MD	39.1	38.1	1.0
MA	41.5	42.5	-1
MI	43.1	43.2	-0.2
MN	35.8	36.5	-0.6
MS	41.9	44.2	-2.3
MO	44.1	42.6	1.5
MT	35.3	34.2	1.2
NE	36.4	35.7	0.8
NV	34.1	36.8	-2.8
NH	41.1	40.6	0.5
NJ	40.7	40.6	0.0
NM	40	37.8	2.2
NY	42.4	41.7	0.6
NC	41.2	43.1	-1.9
ND	30.2	28	2.2
OH	42.7	42	0.8
OK	38.4	38.8	-0.3
OR	37.7	40.2	-2.6
PA	42.1	40.7	1.4
RI	48.6	38	10.6
SC	42.1	43.7	-1.5
SD	30.7	31.2	-0.5
TN	44.9	44.2	0.6
TX	36.9	36	0.9
UT	31.9	30.1	1.8
VT	39.7	32.9	6.7
VA	39.7	38.2	1.5
WA	38.1	37.7	0.4
WV	43.4	44.2	-0.8
WI	40.4	40.7	-0.3
WY	32.3	34.7	-2.4
PR	32.6	28.9	3.7

To review the Compendium itself, please visit their outstanding website here: https://www.disabilitycompendium.org.

For Frequently Asked Questions about the Disability Statistics Compendium, please visit: https://www.disabilitycompendium.org/faq. Assistance interpreting and locating additional statistics is available via UNH’s toll-free number, 866.538.9521, or by email, disability.statistics@unh.edu

Citation: Lauer, E.A. & Houtenville, A.J., 2019. Annual Disability Statistics Compendium: 2018. Durham, NH: University of New Hampshire, Institute on Disability.