A growing number of people with a disability are assisted in
finding and maintaining jobs on the open labour market through
services funded by the Commonwealth Government, according to a new
report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and
Welfare (AIHW).
Open employment services for people with disabilities
1998-99 presents data for the previous financial year on open
employment services funded by the Commonwealth Department of Family
and Community Services.
The data show that at the end of 1998-99 there were about 345
open employment services in Australia assisting 34,000 clients.
About one-half of these clients were supported in a job at some
time during the year.
The data also show that the services are increasingly successful
in placing people in jobs. During 1998-99 the number of clients
with a job increased by 26% from 10,590 at the start of the year to
13,365 at the end of the year. This followed an increase of 27% the
previous year.
The age of clients ranged from 15 to 64 years. The proportion of
younger clients (aged 15 to 19 years) was higher among new clients
(21%) than among all clients who received support during 1998-99
(15%).
On average, clients worked for 33 weeks of the year and earned
$236 per week.
Two-thirds of jobs were on a permanent, regular basis. Jobs were
spread across all industry sectors, with the leading employers
being in manufacturing and retail trade. The average time worked
was 24 hours per week, although individual hours per week varied
considerably.
Both the amount of support given to clients and their chances of
getting a job varied considerably with client characteristics such
as sex, age, type of disability, presence of multiple disabilities
and assistance required with daily living.
Clients had a range of disability types. About two-fifths were
people with an intellectual/learning disability, 24% had a
psychiatric disability and 17% had a physical disability.
20 December 2000
Further information: Louise Golley, AIHW, tel.
02 6244 1187.
For media copies of the report: Publications Officer,
tel. 02 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications
Catalogue for availability.