Some European countries still pose challenges to living and working with a disability

Socioeconomic differences between people with and without disability are particularly significant. Several indicators analysed by Euronews exhibit the considerable gap against people with disabilities.

Disabled people are at more risk of poverty. The trend was detected in all 34 European countries (27 EU members, 5 candidates and 2 European Free Trade Association -EFTA members) where data was available.

Regarding unemployment the average rate in the EU was 9.4 percent among people with disability compared with 6.1 per cent among non-disabled people. Except for Czechia, unemployment rate was higher in all EU countries among disabled people.

Employment rate is also a key indicator of socioeconomic gap between disabled and non-disabled people. 

In 2022, the disability employment gap was 21.4 pp in the EU, according to a European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) report authored by Angelina Atanasova, a researcher at the European Social Observatory in Brussels. 

The gap "mainly reflects differences in institutional factors (such as the implementation of national anti-discrimination laws, welfare state regimes and specific social assistance policies)," Atanasova wrote in her ETUI report.

Note: This is an excerpt of a larger feature published by Euronews. It has been edited for length.