Community & Work Disparities
A Program of the ADA Participatory Action Research Consortium (ADA-PARC)

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Percentage of People with and without Disabilities Not in the Labor Force, Age 18 to 64, 2016

Individuals age 18 to 64 who are not in the labor force include those people who are not classified as members of the labor force. The percentage of people not in the labor force helps us understand why the unemployment rate is not drastically different between people with and without disabilities. We identified and compared the percentage of people age 18 to 64 with and without disabilities living in the community who are not in the labor force. This measure allows us to see that the percentage of people without disabilities who are not in the labor force (US average is 19.1% with a range of 13.3% in Minnesota to 24.1% in West Virginia) is much lower than the percentage of people with disabilities who are not in the labor force (US average is 59.0% with a range of 44.1% in North Dakota to 69.6% in West Virginia). The reason this percentage is so different between the two groups is because many people with disabilities are not in the labor force either because of their participation in government training or benefit programs or because they are discouraged workers experiencing long-term unemployment.

Click to skip over US state map to equivalent table

With a Disability and Not in the Labor Force This is the first of two color coded maps of the United States.  States have been grouped into four quartile ranges. The first quartile ranges from 13.3% to 18.5%. There are no states in this quartile because the quartiles are shared between two maps.  The second quartile ranges from 18.6% to 39.8%. There are no states in this quartile because the quartiles are shared between two maps.  The third quartile ranges from 39.9% to 57.4% and includes the states Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin & Wyoming.  The fourth quartile ranges from 57.5% to 71.0% and includes the states Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Washington DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, United States & West Virginia. With a Disability and Not in the Labor Force Albuquerque 58.5Anchorage 46.0Asheville 57.9Austin 44.9Baltimore 64.8Baton Rouge 54.9Birmingham 67.8Boise 55.5Chicago 62.3Columbia 58.0Columbus 56.0Denver 56.2Detroit 72.2Fresno 61.1Gastonia 63.2Greensboro 61.5Houston 55.5Indianapolis 57.9Lansing 56.8Las Vegas 54.8Little Rock 58.9Memphis 63.2Milwaukee 63.8Milwaukee 63.8Minneapolis 52.3Missoula 48.2Montgomery 65.8Nashville 54.3New Orleans 62.7Oakland 58.7Phoenix 59.2Pittsburgh 58.8Portland 54.4Raleigh 47.5Richmond 57.8Riverside 62.6Sacramento 61.0Salt Lake City 47.9San Francisco 56.7Santa Barbara 52.7Seattle 48.7Spokane 62.8St. Petersburg 64.6Tacoma 56.4Tampa 58.9Tucson 56.9Tulsa 55.6Washington 58.2 Without a Disability and Not in the Labor Force This is the second of two color coded maps of the United States.  States have been grouped into four quartile ranges. The first quartile ranges from 13.3% to 18.5% and includes the states Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Washington DC, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin & Wyoming.  The second quartile ranges from 18.6% to 39.8% and includes the states Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, United States, Utah, Washington & West Virginia.  The third quartile ranges from 39.9% to 57.4%. There are no states in this quartile because the quartiles are shared between two maps.  The fourth quartile ranges from 57.5% to 71.0%. There are no states in this quartile because the quartiles are shared between two maps. Without a Disability and Not in the Labor Force Albuquerque 58.5Anchorage 46.0Asheville 57.9Austin 44.9Baltimore 64.8Baton Rouge 54.9Birmingham 67.8Boise 55.5Chicago 62.3Columbia 58.0Columbus 56.0Denver 56.2Detroit 72.2Fresno 61.1Gastonia 63.2Greensboro 61.5Houston 55.5Indianapolis 57.9Lansing 56.8Las Vegas 54.8Little Rock 58.9Memphis 63.2Milwaukee 63.8Milwaukee 63.8Minneapolis 52.3Missoula 48.2Montgomery 65.8Nashville 54.3New Orleans 62.7Oakland 58.7Phoenix 59.2Pittsburgh 58.8Portland 54.4Raleigh 47.5Richmond 57.8Riverside 62.6Sacramento 61.0Salt Lake City 47.9San Francisco 56.7Santa Barbara 52.7Seattle 48.7Spokane 62.8St. Petersburg 64.6Tacoma 56.4Tampa 58.9Tucson 56.9Tulsa 55.6Washington 58.2
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Data source. 2016, American Community Survey (ACS), 5 year Estimates. Table C18120, employment by disability status
Calculation. Number in each group (people with disabilities or people without disabilities) who are not in the labor force divided by the total number of persons in each group.
Note. Individuals not in the labor force include students, homemakers, retired workers, seasonal workers interviewed in an off season who were not looking for work, institutionalized people, and people doing only incidental unpaid family work (less than 15 hours)

Percentage of People with and without Disabilities Not in the Labor Force, Age 18 to 64 by region

Click on a state to view city data.

Percentage of People with and without Disabilities Not in the Labor Force, Age 18 to 64 by Region. Click on a state to view city data, where available.
RegionWith a disabilityWithout a disability
United States59.0%19.1%
Alaska48.8%17.8%
Alabama66.8%22.3%
Arkansas64.8%21.4%
Arizona59.3%21.7%
California59.6%21.2%
Colorado51.8%16.9%
Connecticut52.7%16.1%
District of Columbia58.2%17.5%
Delaware57.6%18.6%
Florida62.2%20.4%
Georgia61.9%20.5%
Hawaii53.9%18.9%
Iowa49.3%14.4%
Idaho54.4%19.7%
Illinois57.2%17.8%
Indiana58.6%17.7%
Percentage of People with and without Disabilities Not in the Labor Force, Age 18 to 64 by Region. Click on a state to view city data, where available.
RegionWith a disabilityWithout a disability
Kansas52.3%16.3%
Kentucky66.9%20.3%
Louisiana61.2%21.6%
Massachusetts57.3%16.0%
Maryland52.7%16.1%
Maine61.7%16.0%
Michigan62.9%19.4%
Minnesota48.6%13.3%
Missouri60.0%17.3%
Mississippi66.6%22.6%
Montana53.7%18.2%
North Carolina61.5%19.5%
North Dakota44.1%14.3%
Nebraska48.4%13.4%
New Hampshire53.4%14.6%
New Jersey55.3%18.0%
New Mexico61.5%22.6%
Percentage of People with and without Disabilities Not in the Labor Force, Age 18 to 64 by Region. Click on a state to view city data, where available.
RegionWith a disabilityWithout a disability
Nevada52.4%18.6%
New York61.1%20.2%
Ohio59.2%17.7%
Oklahoma59.0%20.1%
Oregon55.9%19.3%
Pennsylvania58.7%18.2%
Rhode Island59.9%16.6%
South Carolina63.9%19.9%
South Dakota44.5%14.2%
Tennessee64.4%19.5%
Texas55.8%20.2%
Utah49.8%18.7%
Virginia56.5%17.8%
Vermont55.9%15.7%
Washington56.2%19.2%
Wisconsin53.7%14.8%
West Virginia69.6%24.1%
Wyoming44.9%16.6%