Opening Doors: Better Jobs and Fairer Wages for Disabled Workers

This report, written by Sam Bennett, Owain Emslie and Reilly Polaschek of the Grattan Institute, examines why Australia's disability employment system fails people with high support needs, despite more than $1.3 billion in annual public investment. Only 34 per cent of Australians with profound or severe disability are employed, compared to 82 per cent of non-disabled people.

The report argues the system is fragmented and too often diverts people into sheltered work or day programs. It recommends the government:

• prioritise open employment for people with high support needs
• expand mainstream employment opportunities through employer reporting and incentives
• lift standards for Disability Social Enterprises so they can pay fair wages, and
• move away from sub-minimum wages and disability-only employment over time

It's useful for policymakers, employment providers and disability social enterprises interested in reforming how disabled Australians are supported into work.