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Expanding Opportunities for Workers with Disabilities

Chart I: Employment Participation of Working-age Adults in Maine by Disability Status

In 2009, there were about 109,000 working-age adults with a disability living in Maine. Of these, 37,000 were employed. The employment rate of people with disabilities is less than half the rate of those with no disability. This is true in both the state of Maine and the country as a whole.

In 2009, 34 percent of adults with disabilities were employed—compared to 80 percent of adults without a disability. In addition, about one in five working-age adults with disabilities were employed for more than 35 hours per week (full-time) and worked for more than 50 weeks (full-year). The rate of full-time/full-year work among adults with a disability is only about one-third that of adults with no disability.

The recession appears to have significantly impacted employment among workers with disabilities. Between 2008 and 2009, the estimated number of employed adults with a disability declined from 40,000 to 37,000, and the employment rate fell from 40 percent to 34 percent. Similarly, the rate of full-time/full-year employment among adults with a disability fell from 25 to 20 percent.

Source: Muskie School of Public Service calculations using the 2008-2009 American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS)

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