Employment Outcomes of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities - Benefits to Bridging the Gap

Oct 15, 2026

Employment outcomes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) show a significant disparity in employment rates, especially for individuals with more extensive support needs. The content highlights that only 21.5% of individuals receiving state DD services are employed, while youth employment experiences can improve postsecondary outcomes. It outlines bridging-gap benefits for quality of life, workplace diversity, job retention, employer attitudes, productivity, profitability, and competitiveness when supports and accommodations are provided.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

Employment Outcomes of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Benefits to Bridging the Gap

Strategies for Hiring People with IDD and Supporting Employment Retainment

Where to Start? A List of Resources

References

Employment Outcomes of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities • There is a big disparity in employment rates for individuals with more extensive support needs, including individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) . • Only 21. 5% of individuals with IDD receiving state DD services are employed (Winsor, et al. 2022) . • “Minnesota has 50 available workers for every 100 open jobs.” (U. S. Chamber of Commerce, n. d.) . • Youth employment experiences lead to better employment outcomes following secondary education (Carter et al,. 2012; Mazzotti et al., 2016; Siperstein et al., 2014; Test et al., 2009; Wehman et al., 2015) . Benefits to Bridging the Gap • Initiatives that support the employment of people with IDD can help improve quality of life outcomes as well as help improve current staff shortages. • Hiring people with IDD brings diversity to the workplace (Lindsay et al., 2018) . » People with disabilities are more likely to stay on the job. » People with disabilities bring unique talents, perspectives, and ideas to the workplace. • Given the right supports and accommodations, people with disabilities can provide significant contributions to the workplace, just as their nondisabled co-workers. • Employers with experience hiring people with disabilities have expressed positive attitudes towards their employees, including the commitment and reliability of their employees with disabilities (Fraser et al., 2010; Lindsay et al., 2018) . • Prior experience hiring people with disabilities has been found to be highly correlated with greater willingness to hire other people with disabilities and with improved perceptions of work performance (Dean et al., 2022) . • Previous research has demonstrated improved profits, cost-effectiveness, improved retention, and reduced turnover as a result of hiring people with disabilities (Lindsay et al., 2018) . • Hiring people with disabilities can improve the image and competitiveness of businesses, as well as customer loyalty and satisfaction (Lindsay et al., 2018) . • Employers consider productivity and work ethic asa benefit of hiring people with disabilities (Lindsay et al., 2018) . • We do understand that people may not have experience hiring or working with people with IDD and may not be aware of resources that can help support this effort (Fraser et al., 2010) . Strategies for Hiring People with IDD and Supporting Employment Retainment • Person-centered planning / assessment of interests and strengths—utilizing those strengths • Use of a Discovery process ([https://kaposia.com/](https://kaposia.com/)[ ](https://kaposia.com/)[services/employment/discovery/](services/employment/discovery/)) • Providing appropriate accommodations • Use of visual reminders (e.g., schedules, who to goto for help, instructions for completing tasks) Where to Start? A List of Resources Resources for Hiring People with Disabilities National • Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) State • DEED • E1MN • Minnesota Transformation Initiative • Kaposia • Minnesota Employment and Economic Development: Hiring People with Disabilities • Inclusive Networking • Go MN! • Rise Local • Connect with Vocational Rehabilitation for counseling, training, job skills and job placement services. • Partner with transition educators: Work coordinators can help develop work-based learning opportunities with job coaching support Resources for Accommodationsand Supporting Retention National • Job Accommodation Network (JAN) • Employee Resource Groups (ERG) • Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion (EARN) Other Resources More about Hiring and Retention • Office of Disability Employment Policy: Employers More about Accommodations • Office of Disability Employment Policy: Accommodations Employer Trainings • Inclusive Networking: Companies • Inclus

FAQs

Why are employment outcomes for people with IDD often lower than expected?

The document states there is a big disparity in employment rates, especially for individuals with more extensive support needs. It also notes that only 21.5% of individuals receiving state DD services are employed.

How can hiring people with IDD benefit workplaces and employers?

It explains that hiring people with IDD improves quality of life outcomes and helps address staff shortages. It also emphasizes workplace diversity, positive employer attitudes, better retention, reduced turnover, and improved business image and competitiveness.

What strategies does the document recommend to support hiring and retention?

The document recommends person-centered planning and assessment of interests and strengths, using a Discovery process, providing appropriate accommodations, and using visual reminders such as schedules and instructions.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Aria Callaghan