The unemployment rate eased slightly for Americans with disabilities in March, the U.S. Department of Labor said Friday.
Last month, people with disabilities faced a jobless rate of 15.2 percent, down from 15.8 percent reported in February.
The improving conditions came as the economy added 120,000 jobs.
Despite the drop in unemployment, however, those with disabilities continued to face a more uphill battle in the job market compared to Americans without disabilities. The jobless rate for the general population remained relatively steady at 8.2 percent in March, down from 8.3 percent the previous month.
The Labor Department began tracking employment among people with disabilities in October 2008. There is not yet enough data compiled to establish seasonal trends among this population, so statistics for this group are not seasonally adjusted.
Data on people with disabilities covers those over the age of 16 who do not live in institutions. The first employment report specific to this population was made available in February 2009. Now, reports are released monthly.
As reported, many companies if not all do have hiring practices for people with disabilities listed in with all their other company policies. Is this for anti-discrimination protection only, or are they actually implementing those policies by providing purposeful employment?