A Study on Factors of Changing Employment Status of People with Disabilities: A Focus on Subjective Perception

Background/purpose: The employment of people with disabilities needs to create social relationships, and allow people to reach their potential for self-realization and integration into society. However, the percentage of people with disabilities is 25.6% lower than that of people without disabilities in 2015. This fact shows that it is very difficult for people with disabilities to be employed in Korea. To promote the employment of people with disabilities, this study explored employment status change factors for people with disabilities, analyzed these factors, and suggested relevant policies.

Methods: The data came from the Panel Survey of Employment for the Disabled (PSED) in the third and the fourth year. The third PSED among this study sample included 4,566 people with disabilities aged from 17 to 77. The fourth PSED included 4,397 people with disabilities. This study used the CAPI(computer-assisted personal interviewing) method to collect these data. STATA 13 was used for logistic regression analysis. The dependent variable was the change in employment status. The independent variables in this study included sex, age, marital status, the presence of dependent children, religion, and employment status of the mother as socio-demographic characteristics; the level of disabilities, multiple disabilities, and current health status as disability and health factors; academic background and the presence of certificates as professional capacity factors; one’s recognition of accepting disabilities, experiences of disability discrimination, and subjective socioeconomic status as subjective perceptions.

Results:First, the results showed that people with a spouse had a higher employment rate than people without a spouse, people with mild disabilities had a higher employment rate than those with severe disabilities, and university graduates had a higher employment rate than uneducated people. Second, the higher the acceptance of disabilities and experiences of disability discrimination were, the higher the probability of changing employment status was.

Conclusions and Implications: On the basis of the research results, the relevant policies for employment of people with disabilities are as follows. First, in the labor market, employment opportunities should be evenly distributed regardless of the type of families. Second, training facilities for people with disabilities should be strengthened to develop and educate people with disabilities. Third, health promotion programs should also be expanded to the workplace for people with disabilities. Fourth, in order to promote a receptive attitude toward disabilities, education is initially needed to improve the self-confidence of people with disabilities. Fifth, as their experiences of discrimination in everyday life and perceptions of discrimination in job search activities are higher than others, people with disabilities should be encouraged to overcome these difficulties and actively participate in employment activities.