WIREDGOV

Disabled workers effectively stop earning from today (Wednesday) because of the disability pay gap, meaning that they’ll effectively work for free from now until the end of the year.   

• New TUC analysis reveals the earnings gulf between disabled and non-disabled workers is £2.24 an hour (a 15.5% pay gap), which leaves them making over £4,000 a year less than non-disabled workers on average.
• The gap is even wider for disabled women – as non-disabled men earn over a quarter (27.3%) more than disabled women. 
• This is coupled with higher rates of unemployment for disabled workers, and a higher likelihood of being in insecure work.
• Union body urges the government to press on with delivering its plans to introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting – and says Employment Rights Bill can help improve living standards for disabled workers.

New analysis published by the TUC shows that earnings gulf between disabled and non-disabled workers remains significant at £2.24 an hour. 

That means disabled employees working 35 hours a week have to get by with over £4,000 less a year compared to non-disabled workers on average.  

This amounts to a 15.5% disability pay gap. While this represents a welcome modest improvement from last year (when the gap was 17.2%), the TUC warns it is still substantial and needs urgent action to tackle.  

Higher unemployment rate 

TUC analysis also shows that the unemployment rate among disabled people is now the highest it has been since before the pandemic - more than double the unemployment rate for non-disabled people. This highlights the failure of attempts by pervious governments to support disabled people into work.  

On top of higher unemployment rates and lower earnings, disabled people also face higher living costs.   

On average, according to Scope analysis disabled people have to fork out an additional £1,224 a month to secure the same standard of living as a non-disabled person.  

The costs disabled people face can include higher gas and electricity bills to keep the homes warm; home adaptations; hearing or other sensory equipment; manual or electric mobility aids; and higher food bills to allow them to meet specific dietary requirements.  

Low pay, low rights    

New TUC analysis also shows that disabled workers are significantly more likely to be employed on zero-hours contracts than non-disabled workers (4.3% compared to 3.3%).  

The TUC says zero-hours contracts hand the employer total control over workers’ hours and earning power, meaning workers never know how much they will earn each week, and their income is subject to the whims of managers.   

The union body argues that this makes it hard for workers to plan their lives, look after their children and get to medical appointments.  

And it makes it harder for workers to challenge unacceptable behaviour by bosses because of concerns about whether they will be penalised by not being allocated hours in the future. 

The government’s Employment Rights Bill is set to ban zero hours contracts – a welcome measure that will improve the lives of many disabled workers. 

Mandatory pay gap reporting and action plans   

The Labour government has also committed to introducing mandatory disability pay gap reporting for employers – a measure already in place for reporting on gender pay gaps.  

Reporting, coupled with mandatory action plans to address any identified gaps, could improve the lives of disabled workers in England, Scotland and Wales.  

The TUC is urging the government to press on with delivering its plans to introduce mandatory pay gap reporting. 

This needs to sit alongside wider measures including reform of the Access to Work scheme, so that people get the support they need to get into work, and requirements on employers to deliver reasonable adjustments rapidly.  

In addition, the Mayfield review, published last Wednesday, recognised that more needs to be done to boost the number of disabled people in work and set out some key steps in the right direction.

Click here for the full press release