Labor Force Participation and Income of Individuals with Disabilities in Sheltered and Competitive Employment: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analyses of Seven States During the 1980s and 1990s

William & Mary Law Review, Sep 2017

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the labor force participation and wages of individuals with disabilities who have transitioned from facility-based (i.e., sheltered) work to employment in integrated and competitive settings. The investigators had access to data from seven states on the labor force participation and wages of more than 3000 individuals with disabilities who have moved from institutional to community placements over the past two decades. Among the findings: the majority of individuals in these geographically diverse samples were unemployed over time; sheltered employment prepared some individuals for entry into employment in integrated settings and resulted in substantial gains in earned income and reported higher levels of daily living skills. However, the daily life functioning of many individuals who remained in sheltered employment was comparable to that of those who transitioned to integrated employment. Avenues for future research, and legal and policy analysis are discussed.

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Labor Force Participation and Income of Individuals with Disabilities in Sheltered and Competitive Employment: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analyses of Seven States During the 1980s and 1990s

Labor Force Participation and Income of Individuals with Disabilities in Sheltered and Competitive Employment: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analyses of Seven States During the 1980s and 1990s Peter Blanck Helen A. Schartz Kevin M. Schartz PETER BLANCK, HELEN A. SCHARTZ & KEVIN M. SCHARTZ* The purpose of this investigation was to examine the labor force participation and wages of individuals with disabilities who have transitioned from facility-based (i.e., sheltered) work to employment in integrated and competitive settings. The investigators had access to data from seven states on the labor force participation and wages of more than 3000 individuals with disabilities who have moved from institutional to community placements over the past two decades. * Direct correspondence to Peter Blanck, Law, Health Policy &Disability Center (LHPDC), The University of Iowa, 431 Boyd Law Building, Iowa City, Iowa 52242-1113, USA; e-mail: . Dr. Blanck, Ph.D., J.D., is the Charles M. and Marion Kierscht Professor of Law and Director of the LHPDC. Dr. Helen Schartz, Ph.D., J.D., and Dr. Kevin Schartz, Ph.D., M.C.S. are Research Scientists at the LHPDC. The views herein reflect only those of the authors and not of any funding agency. This research was funded in part by: The President's Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities; U.S. Department of Education, National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) on Workforce Investment and Employment Policy for Persons with Disabilities, Grant No. H133B98004299; The Great Plain ADA and IT Center; and The University of Iowa College of Law Foundation. For related projects, see the LHPDC web site at httpJ/www.its.uiowa.edu/law. The data for the present analyses were provided by James Conroy, Center for Outcome Analysis. Dr. Conroy and Amanda Fullerton provided invaluable assistance with regard to the development of the data sets. For their helpful comments, we also thank Lisa Clay, Michael Morris, James Schmeling, and Robert Silverstein. An earlier version of this Article was presented as a report to The President's Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, December, 2001. See http'//www. dol.gov/_sec/programs/ptfead. Among the findings: the majority of individuals in these geographically diverse samples were unemployed over time; sheltered employment prepared some individuals for entry into employment in integrated settings and resulted in substantial gains in earned income and reported higher levels of daily living skills. However, the daily life functioning of many individuals who remained in sheltered employment was comparable to that of those who transitioned to integrated employment. Avenues for future research, and legal and policy analysis are discussed. TABLE OF CONTENTS CONCLUSION . ....................................... A. Core Findings .................................. B. EmergingIssues and FutureResearch .............. C. Closing ....................................... METHODOLOGICAL APPENDIX .......................... A. DataDescription................................ B. PreliminaryAnalyses ............................ C. LongitudinalAnalyses ........................... D. Wage Analyses ................................. E. RegressionAnalyses ............................. INTRODUCTION A remarkable shift has occurred in the area of disability employment policy and law. In contrast to prior models of charity, compensation, and medical oversight, contemporary employment policies focus on increasing the labor force participation of qualified persons with disabilities and reducing their dependence on governmental entitlement programs. The modern disability civil rights model, as reflected in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), is aimed at increasing the labor force participation of qualified working age adults with disabilities and preventing discrimination in the workplace.1 Despite the dramatic change in perspective toward disability civil rights, there is little empirical information documenting the work lives of Americans with disabilities and their segregation from or entry into the contemporary workforce. Of course, this information is necessary for policymakers, courts, and persons with disabilities to assess whether the new disability employment policies are effective. In addition, a more complete perspective is gained when information is gathered from a variety of sources. The purpose ofthe present investigation is to examine one aspect of disability and employment policy: labor force participation and wages of a large sample of individuals with disabilities who have transitioned from facility-based (i.e., sheltered) work to employment in integrated and competitive settings. The investigators had access to data from seven states on the labor force participation and wages of more than 3000 individuals with disabilities who have moved from i (...truncated)


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Peter Blanck, Helen A. Schartz, Kevin M. Schartz. Labor Force Participation and Income of Individuals with Disabilities in Sheltered and Competitive Employment: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analyses of Seven States During the 1980s and 1990s, William & Mary Law Review, 2018, Volume 44, Issue 3,