Recent publications have highlighted that disabled woman represent the majority of disabled people in EU and are more likely than men to report a basic activity difficulty or a disability in employment (Lodovici & Orlando, 2017). Consequently, they may be cornered and hemmed within lower employment ranks, feeling unchallenged and under-valued - a reality that leads to the increased percentage of disabled women at risk of poverty compared to both disabled men and women with no reported disability (Pettinicchio & Maroto, 2017). Scholarship indicate that disabled women are under-represented in the labor market; they are under-paid and experience more employment hardships compared to disabled men (Lodovici & Orlando, 2017. Pettinicchio & Maroto, 2017). They are likely to face multiple disadvantages and forms of exclusion and to suffer high levels of stigmatization in relation to their male counterparts (O’Hara, 2004). Despite the above data, still, little attention has been given to the triple nexus of gender, disability and employment and its multiplier effects. As such, the multiple and intersectional discrimination on the grounds of crosscutting gender and disability aspects remain significantly under-researched (Lodovici & Orlando, 2017).
The compounding effect(s) of gender and disability in the work sector
Disabled women may be “twice penalized” or in “double jeopardy” as a result of structural and attitudinal factors associated with the intersection of both statuses. Several studies make an explicit connection between gender and disability pointing to the compounding effects of multiple identities in perpetuating the disability gender wage gap (Doren & Benz, 2001. O’Hara, 2004). Furthermore, social norms and the deeply rooted patriarchal values contribute significantly to the stigmatization of disabled women as undervalued, undesirable, asexual and dependent, and give thus rise to abuse (Gonzalez, 2009. Lindsay et al., 2019. Naami et al., 2012).
The scope and intensity of the vulnerability of disabled women can be fully perceived through an intersectional perspective as simultaneous, multiple discrimination relating to disability and gender (Coffey, et al., 2014). It seems that disabled women belong to “a specific category of bias”. They experience a double disadvantage or a “double handicap” due to the intersection of multiple disadvantaged identities. Disabled women face greater odds of being clustered or “ghettoized” into set-aside (often low paying) occupations, feeling unchallenged and stuck. The health risks women face in their occupations are less visible and less likely to be recognized, being often associated with psychological and stress-driven disabilities rather than physical disabilities related to manual work (Gonzalez, 2009. Naami et al., 2012).
At EU level, the main labor market indicators (employment, unemployment, NEET and inactivity rates) manifest that disabled women are more likely to be inactive and less likely to be employed than disabled men and non-disabled women. On average in EU, disabled women are more likely than both disabled men and non-disabled women to work part-time and/or to work from home. While disability and health issues are among the major reasons for leaving a job (especially for men), refraining from seeking employment is also listed in the major causes for the under-representation of disabled women in the labor market. Quantitative labor market research on gendered disability employment and earning outcomes provides less than definitive answers about why men and women with similar disabilities experience different levels of inequality (Lodovici & Orlando, 2017 Naami et al., 2012).
Understanding gendered disability inequality in the work sector
Understanding gendered disability inequality requires explanations that take into account the intersection of both statuses (gender and disability). Although they face a double disadvantage within the labor market, disability can also be especially limiting for men due to the ways in which it conflicts with traditional norms of competition, productivity and masculinity (Mik‐Meyer, 2015). Disabled people are especially susceptible to widespread beliefs that they are too weak and too costly to employ, incapable of performing certain tasks, and underproductive when being considered for a job. These associations are troubling for disabled men as well because they conflict with norms of masculinity that emphasize power and autonomy.
The European Union has neither mainstreamed a disability perspective in its gender policies and programs, nor adopted a gender perspective in its disability strategies. The gender, disability and employment issues are precariously caught in the middle of opposing ideas as to which direction is best and more effective to be followed. Albeit the growing tendency to bring the topic into the table of discussion, oftentimes, reality may become increasingly politicized, with good intentions and multiple, conflicted interests at play. Still, any willingness to reshape overhauling socioeconomic models towards a sustainable future for disabled women, should take into account that this is not a homogeneous social group. Their experiences and needs depend on the type and severity of disability, the age and manner of disability onset, socio-economic and demographic characteristics, and biographical experiences (Lodovici & Orlando, 2017). By highlighting how different types of disabilities interact with gender to produce varying degrees of negative labor market outcomes, a hierarchy of disadvantages becomes evident; indicatively, the lowest employment rates and earnings levels remain persistent when it comes to women with multiple and cognitive disabilities. Furthering, the intertwined gender, disability, and employment aspects seem to be aggravated for disabled women coming from a low socioeconomic status with regards to their inclusion in the labor market and the payment levels (Pettinicchio & Maroto, 2017).
The triple nexus of the intertwined gender and disability-based discrimination in equal employment opportunities tends to be skewed under the “double standard” of disability and employment and the stemmed exclusion from the labor market. Regrettably, the ripple effects of the linkages between gender, disability and employment remain disregarded over the unprecedented daily struggle and upheaval of disabled women. Progress in disability stated policies cannot be garnered through rhetoric and good intentions alone. The need for meaningful re-orientation of the disability policy-practices and the collaboration of all stakeholders towards transforming rhetoric into reality has never been more visible or crucial.
For more information on Professor Anastasia Vlachou and Lecturer Valia Kalaitzi
References
Coffey, M., Coufopoulos, A., & Kinghorn, K. (2014). Barriers to employment for visually impaired women. International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 7(3), 171-185. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJWHM-06-2013-0022
Doren, B., & Benz, M. (2001). Gender equity issues in the vocational and transition services and employment outcomes experienced by young women with disabilities. In H. Rousso & M. L. Wehmeyer (Eds.), Double Jeopardy: Addressing gender equity in special education (pp. 289-312). New York, NY: State University of New York Press.
González, M. L. (2009). Getting to know reality and breaking stereotypes: the experience of two generations of working disabled women. Disability & society, 24(4), 447-459. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687590902879056
Lindsay, S., Cagliostro, E., Albarico, M., Mortaji, N., & Srikanthan, D. (2019). Gender matters in the transition to employment for young adults with physical disabilities. Disability and rehabilitation, 41(3), 319-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2017.1390613
Lodovici, M. S. & Orlando, N. (2017). Discrimination and Access to Employment for Female Workers with Disabilities. European Parliament: Directorate general for internal policies. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html
Mik‐Meyer, N. (2015). Gender and disability: Feminizing male employees with visible impairments in Danish work organizations. Gender, Work & Organization, 22(6), 579-595. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12107
Naami, A., Hayashi, R., & Liese, H. (2012). The unemployment of women with physical disabilities in Ghana: issues and recommendations. Disability & Society, 27(2), 191-204. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2011.644930
O'Hara, B. (2004). Twice penalized: Employment discrimination against women with disabilities. Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 15(1), 27-34. https://doi.org/10.1177/10442073040150010501
Pettinicchio, D., & Maroto, M. (2017). Employment outcomes among men and women with disabilities: how the intersection of gender and disability status shapes labor market inequality. In B. Altman (Ed.), Factors in Studying Employment for Persons with Disability: How the picture can change (pp. 3-33). Emerald Group Publishing.
