THE EMPLOYMENT OF PEOPLE WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES IN AN AGE OF INSECURITY

Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) holds tha t persons with disabilities must be given equal access to jobs for whi ch they are capable of performing the essential functions, and it mand ates that employers provide reasonable accommodation to accomplish thi s goal. The passage of the ADA raised expectations about employment am ong persons with disabilities, but this expectation has been tempered by growing job insecurity throughout the economy. In this article, I r eview the major trends in employment in the United States and show tha t persons with disabilities have experienced these trends in exaggerat ed form. Thus women with disabilities have experienced substantial inc reases in employment rates, while men with disabilities have seen thei r employment rates decrease. Persons with disabilities have experience d a disproportionate amount of the growth in part-time work. Overall, persons with disabilities have become one of the principal ways of acc ommodating change in the demand for labor.