A new ILO working paper has revealed a significant ‘disability wage gap’ of 5 per cent between women and men with disabilities in developing countries and highlights the legal frameworks established to promote equal opportunities and fair remuneration for people with disabilities.
The current study indicates that individuals with disabilities are less likely to participate in the labour market. When they do engage, they face higher unemployment rates, are more likely to be self-employed, and generally earn lower wages.
The report stipulates that “The share of low-paid workers is higher among employees with disabilities”.
These disparities cannot be solely attributed to individual characteristics such as educational attainment, experience, or occupational category. Rather, they are likely driven by additional factors, including the limited provision of workplace accommodations in many firms, the potentially greater job flexibility offered by self-employment, and discrimination against people with disabilities.
It is estimated that 1.3 billion people, or nearly one in six of the global population, experience significant disability (as of 2021). With only 3 in 10 disabled individuals active in the labour market, their overall participation rate remains very low, and progress towards greater inclusion has been relatively slow. The situation is even more challenging for women with disabilities, who face a considerable gender pay gap compared to their male counterparts.
People with disabilities tend to earn less
According to a new working paper from the International Labour Organization (ILO), people with disabilities are less likely to participate in the labour market and tend to earn less when they do.
The paper, which includes new data, reveals that employees with disabilities are paid, on average, 12 per cent less per hour than their non-disabled colleagues. Furthermore, three-quarters of this gap—9 per cent—cannot be explained by differences in education, age, or type of work. In low and lower-middle-income countries, this disability wage gap is even larger, at 26 per cent, with nearly half of the discrepancy unexplained by socio-demographic factors.
The findings also suggest that people with disabilities may gravitate towards self-employment due to the potentially greater flexibility it offers in terms of working hours, access to work facilities, and avoidance of discrimination.
Improving the labour market participation of individuals with disabilities
Based on the information provided, the situation for the disabled workforce in Nigeria, and more broadly in developing countries, reveals several key challenges and opportunities for improvement.
To significantly improve the employment outcomes for people with disabilities in Nigeria, it is important to address the wage gap, create accessible recruitment processes, provide employer support, ensure workplace adaptations, create awareness and training, workplace accessibility and targeted programmes aligned with international standards.
The Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), also needs to be implemented as it provides a framework for addressing discrimination and promoting equal opportunities. Although disability is not explicitly listed as a prohibited ground of discrimination in the Convention, it allows Member States to include it.
The Convention supports affirmative action and adaptations to ensure equal opportunities, and the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR) encourages measures such as employment quotas and anti-discrimination efforts.
