The Labor Market Experience of Workers With Disabilities: The Ada and Beyond

This book focuses on the labor market provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). It provides a comprehensive analysis of the current labor market experience of American workers with disabilities and an assessment of the impact the ADA has had on that experience. Whereas previous studies focused on a single dimension of this experience (e.g., wages or employment levels) evaluated at a single point in time, or focused on the labor supply impact of disability policies, this research explores the labor market experience across those dimensions and across time. The result is a more complete picture of what Americans with disabilities can expect as participants in the labor market and of whether this experience has been impacted by the passage of the ADA. As the author points out, "The analyses in this book show that while disabled workers are making progress in some dimensions of their labor market experience, the ADA does not seem to have had a striking impact in either a positive or negative direction. Expanding or strengthening incentives to enter the labor force, providing training focused in high-growth, high-earnings occupations, and assistance in screening and matching workers with appropriate jobs are policies that would capitalize on the recent progress made by disabled workers and move them in the direction of greater labor market gains."