Disability Royal Commission - Response to Employment issues paper

Executive Summary

Young people with disability are one of the most disadvantaged cohorts in the labour market. They experience the intersectionality of systemic disadvantage and oppression of both being a person with disability and a young person – with this disadvantage being even further amplified by other demographic factors, such as socio-economic status, ethnicity, gender or sexual diversity, or living in a regional or rural area.

Young people with disability in the labour force are more than twice as likely to be unemployed or underemployment than older adults with disability. Young people with disability also face increased systemic and structural disadvantage in the labour market compared to young people without disability.

The rights of people with disability to work and enjoy full participation in the community on the equal basis as others is articulated in the United Nation’s Convention of Rights of Persons with Disabilities, of which Australia has ratified. Not only are the rights of young people with disability being violated, but in experiencing increased systemic barriers to employment, their ability to benefit from the good things in life that having a job and financial security provides is denied.

CYDA’s response to the Disability Royal Commission Employment issues paper highlights that the disadvantage young people with disability experience in the labour force is the result of systems neglect throughout life transitions.

CYDA’s response covers:

• The context of systems and structural barriers experienced by young people with disability in the workforce
• The inequitable opportunities children and young people with disability have to learn and develop in their lead up to transitioning into the workforce
• The discrimination young people with disability experience in the workforce
• The lack of appropriate supports for young people with disability to buffer or negate the pitfalls of our imperfect labour market.

The response also includes four case studies which illustrate the impact of systems failures on the lives of young people with disability. 

Recommendations

Overarching recommendation for the Disability Royal Commission for future policy development

• Young people with disability are involved in all-stages of policy decisions and the development of interventions and programs that impact their lives.

Recommendations to ensure inclusive education and tailored transition support for strong employment outcomes

• The DRC makes strong recommendations to ensure inclusive education as defined by the CPRD as a human right and to ensure strong post-school outcomes
• Invest in strong data outcomes monitoring of the experiences of students with disability in their education and post-school transition to further education and employment
• Invest in the evaluation of existing state-based school re-engagement initiatives and understanding their effectiveness is supporting students with disability
• The Commonwealth and state and territory governments undertake major systemic reform as outlined in Driving change: A roadmap for achieving inclusive education in Australia to realise Australia’s CRPD obligations
• Increase tailored supports for young people for young people with disability to engage in work experience and/or paid employment during school years
• The recommendations for students with disability in the Review of senior secondary pathways into work, further education and training be adopted and evaluated
• Improve national consistency in post-school transition activities, building on what works best around the country
• Include young people with disability and families in every stage of developing new post-school transition activities
• Ensure post-school transition programs are well-structured, outcome-oriented and student-focused
• Start post-school planning activities for all students with disability by at least the age of 15
• Improve data collection about post-school transition programs, including their uptake, implementation and outcomes
• Review funding arrangements in all states and territories for school and post-school programs for students with disability
• Address the social exclusion that children and young people with disability experience in community and education settings
• Create and strengthen leadership and networking opportunities for young people with disability
• Invest in strategies and initiatives that remove barriers to higher education for young people with disability.
• Improve mechanisms for students in education settings to make complaints.
• Improve national data collection of complaints of discrimination and harassment in education settings.
• Monitor the impact of funding reforms on the participation rates of higher education students with disability.

Recommendations to address direct and indirect discrimination in workplace

• Increase targeted, evidence-based interventions addressing the negative and misinformed attitudes of employers. These development strategies must include the meaningful involvement of young people with disability
• Assure that the Australian Human Rights Commission, and other independent oversight agencies, receive sufficient resourcing to safeguard the rights of young people with disability in the workforce

• Counter the narrative of ‘low expectations’ for young with disability through concrete actions and monitor post-school outcomes for students with disability.

Recommendations to develop evidence-based programs to support young people with disability secure work

• Improve monitoring and public release of caseload and outcome data of young people with disability in employment programs
• Ensure young people with disability across Australia can access age-appropriate employment programs that are designed to address barriers to employment
• Provide an adequate safety net for young people with disability that reflects the contemporary cost-of-living

• Invest in the research and development of creative employment opportunities for young people with disability
• Ensure timely and appropriate information and support is available for young people to assist them to secure income support payments. 

Introduction

Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYDA) is the national representative organisation for children and young people with disability aged 0 to 25 years. CYDA has an extensive national membership of more than 5,000 young people with disability, families and caregivers of children with disability, and advocacy and community organisations.

CYDA’s purpose is to systemically advocate at the national level for the rights and interests of all children and young people with disability living in Australia, and it undertakes the following to achieve this:

• listening and responding to the voices and experiences of children and young people with disability
• advocating for children and young people with disability for equal opportunities, participation and inclusion in the Australian community
• educating national public policy-makers and the broader community about the experiences of children and young people with disability
• informing children and young people with disability, their families and caregivers about their citizenship rights and entitlements
• celebrating the successes and achievements of children and young people with disability.

We are pleased to provide a submission to the Royal Commission into Abuse, Violence, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability (the Commission) on the topic on youth employment.

Young people with disability are one of the most disadvantaged cohorts in the labour market. They experience the intersectionality of systemic disadvantage and oppression of both being a person with disability and a young person – with this disadvantage being even further amplified by other demographic factors, such as socio-economic status, ethnicity, gender or sexual diversity, or living in a regional or rural area.

While the Commission’s Issues paper on Employment acknowledges that people with disability have lower participation rates in the labour market and are more likely to unemployed and receive lower incomes, CYDA wishes to highlight that within the disability community, young people face increased marginalisation. Young people[1] with disability in the labour force are more than twice as likely to be unemployed than older adults[2] with disability (24.7 per cent compared to 7.9 per cent).[3] Young people with disability are also more than twice as likely to be underemployed[4] — meaning they have the capacity and desire to work more hours than what they are currently employed.

As a young person entering the labour force, their ability to participate is impacted by a range of external factors. These include the decrease in entry-level, ‘blue-collar’ type roles, increase in professional occupations, a larger share of older workers remaining in the workforce, and the increased demand from employers for prospective employees to hold employability skills and work experience.[5] Young people are also more likely to work in service industries, such as retail and food and accommodation services.[6] This type of employment commonly offers fewer hours, precarious employment and reduced economic security.[7]

Young people are also more likely to bear the brunt of economic downturn, with employers more reluctant to hire or retain younger workers due to their limited experience and lower skills during periods of cyclical weakness.[8] This was evident in the ongoing COVID-19 economic crisis, with young workers being disproportionality impacted.[9] According to the Productivity Commission[10], those who experience negative shocks in the labour market go on to have ‘scarring’ effects on their longer-term employment and earnings prospects. While it is unclear how the COVID-19 economic crisis has impacted young people with disability, it is widely acknowledged that the cohorts faces increased systemic and structural disadvantage in the labour market compared to young people without disability.[11]

Recently at the inaugural National Youth Disability Summit, CYDA asked a group of young people with disability what having a job and being employed meant to them. The young people spoke about how having a job was inextricably linked with their identity and the ability to be independent. They shared that having a job and earning their own money allowed them to do the things they would like to do in life, like finding home that suited their needs. The young people also shared that having a job allowed them the opportunity to meet new people and expand their social circles.

The rights of people with disability to work and enjoy full participation in the community on the equal basis as others is articulated in the United Nation’s Convention of Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) – which Australia ratified in 2008. Despite this, young people with disability in the labour force have an underutilisation[12] rate of 47.8 per cent. This means that nearly half of young people with disability who are willing and wanting to work are denied the opportunity to fully participate in society and enjoy the health, social and economic benefits that employment brings.

Experiences of employment, whether positive or negative, must not be understood as a point-in-time phenomenon, but rather the as the culmination of life experiences that can provide risk or protective factors in the labour market. For example, those who enter the labour market equipped with personal resources, such a formal education, social networks, work experience and financial safety nets are more likely to succeed. Whereas those who have adverse experiences with systems in the lead up to the labour market and enter with limited protective resources are more likely to experience poorer outcomes.

The transition and life experience when entering the labour market also has consequential impacts on longer-term outcomes. Young people who struggle to find employment or can only attain ‘low quality’ employment that does not fully utilise their skills have increased chance of longer-term unemployment and reduced future wage growth.[13]

In understanding and responding to the issue of employment for young people with disability, CYDA’s response seeks to draw the Commission’s attention to how systemic neglect in childhood and young adulthood creates and further entrenches employment disadvantage.

CYDA’s response to the Royal Commission into employment covers:

• The inequitable opportunities children and young people with disability have to learn and develop in their lead up to transitioning into the workforce
• The discrimination young people with disability experience in the workforce
• The lack of appropriate supports for young people with disability to buffer or negate the pitfalls of our imperfect labour market.

The response also includes four case studies which illustrate the impact of systems failures on the lives of young people with disability.

CYDA’s response draws on our previous survey and research work, including:

• 2019 National Education Survey
  • Pathways for young people with disability after school (n=86)[14]
  • Time for change: The state of play for inclusion of students with disability (n=505)
• Towards inclusive education: A necessary process of transformation (2019)
• Post school transition: The experiences of students with disability (2015) 

Ensure inclusive education and tailored transition support for strong employment outcomes

As we transition through life stages, we encounter systems that can either pose as an opportunity or risk. How we experience these transitions and systems — and whether or not there are adequate supports in place to protect us from the risks — can change our life trajectory. Those who are supported and are equipped with protective supports from early childhood are more likely to experience better health and social outcomes throughout the lifespan.

From birth, people with disability experience structural disadvantage and encounter ableist systems that neglect their rights and needs. This systemic neglect not only has adverse impacts on the individual in the immediate term, but will have enduring impacts on the opportunities they can access throughout the lifetime. 

Those who enter the labour market equipped with personal resources, such as a quality education, are more likely to achieve better employment outcomes[15]. Children and young people with disability must be provided with equitable, inclusive and appropriate opportunities to learn and develop to give them a competitive chance to find and maintain employment.

Ensure inclusive education

Recommendations

• The DRC makes strong recommendations to ensure inclusive education as defined by the CPRD as a human right and to ensure strong post-school outcomes.
• Invest in strong data outcomes monitoring of the experiences of students with disability in their education and post-school transition to further education and employment
• Invest in the evaluation of existing state-based school re-engagement initiatives and understanding their effectiveness is supporting students with disability
• The Commonwealth and state and territory governments undertake major systemic reform as outlined in Driving change: A roadmap for achieving inclusive education in Australia to realise Australia’s CRPD obligations

Improving post-school outcomes for young people with disability, and supporting wellbeing throughout their lives, begins with an inclusive education in school, as defined by the CPRD, Article 24, General Comment 4 (2016).

People with disability in Australia are less likely to finish school and more likely to leave before the age of 16, and less than a third of people with disability aged 20 or over have completed Year 12-level schooling – compared with 62 per cent of people without a disability.[16] High rates of school disengagement, lack of tailored support, and continuing segregating in schools contribute to poorer post-school opportunities and outcomes for young people with disability.

Evidence shows that inclusive education “has positive benefits for everyone”[17] – students with and without disabilities, as well as teachers and the broader school community. For all students, inclusive education facilitates social development, socially inclusive attitudes, improved education outcomes and communication and language development.[18] Despite these benefits, a range of barriers prevent inclusive education from being implemented, and in many places the rate of segregated schooling is actually increasing.[19]

There are significant post-school benefits for students with disability who are educated in ‘mainstream’ settings, including better academic and vocational outcomes when compared with students educated in segregated settings; being nearly five times more likely to graduate at the expected time than students in segregated settings; increased post-secondary education; and being more likely to be engaged in competitive employment[20].

The CRPD emphasises that no form of segregation constitutes inclusive education[21], but many students with disability in Australia currently experience segregated education programs, including attending special schools, participating in special units in mainstream schools, or having no appropriate option except home-schooling. More students with disability are attending special schools over mainstreams schools than a decade ago.[22] For example, recent data shows that there are 15,521 students enrolled in 108 special schools across Victoria, with enrolment rates in special schools increasing by 53 per cent since 2010. [23]  However, there is no consistent national reporting on the numbers of students enrolled in either special schools or other forms of segregated education like special classes in mainstream schools.

Just over half of the respondents to CYDA’s 2019 post-school survey (56.6 per cent) reported they are attending mainstream schools, with around 47 per cent segregated in either special schools, through dual enrolment (mainstream and a special school), or being home-schooled (see Table 2, Appendix A).

Additionally, half of the students who reported attending a mainstream school are separated in special units or a combination of regular class and a special unit (Table 3, Appendix A).

Further, data collected by CYDA through our 2019 National Education Survey[24] showed that:

• 5 per cent of the 505 respondents reported being refused enrolment
• 6 per cent reported they do not attend school full-time
• 14 per cent reported that they have been suspended
• 1 in 4 reported being subject to abuse by being restrained or secluded.

These negative experiences in school years contribute to lower school completion rates for young people with disability. Recent research[25] from the University of Melbourne finds that at least 50,000 children and young people of school age are disengaged from the Australia education system. While students with disability are acknowledged as being at increased risk of disengaging[26], there is no clear disaggregated data to monitor the disengagement rates of the group. This includes the lack of monitoring of disengagement ‘markers’, such as feeling of school connectedness[27] – a barrier to education frequently reported to CYDA by the young people we work with. 

School disengagement is regarded as a complex issue, with students who disengage experiencing a range of external and systemic barriers to education.[28] To date there is no national response to this issue.[29] While there are some encouraging examples of state-based initiatives, such as Victoria’s Navigator program, the effectiveness of these programs for students with disability is unclear. There is also limited evaluation data on these programs that could support the development of a national, coordinated approach.

With early school leavers being some of the most disadvantaged jobseekers in the labour market, the lack of national response to school disengagement will have enduring impacts on longer-term employment outcomes. Urgent investment is needed in the development and roll-out of holistic initiatives that will remove barriers to education for students with a disability. This includes early intervention efforts, ensuring that all students experience an equitable and quality education from early childhood.[30] To avoid duplication of programs or missed opportunities for learnings, existing initiatives should be resourced to evaluate and understand their effectiveness for students with disability and other cohorts alike.

For children and young people to have equal opportunities to thrive in their schooling and their eventual employment, the phasing out of segregated education and the realisation of inclusive education (as defined by the CPRD which Australia has endorsed, but not fulfilled) for students with disability must be a priority.

The Australian Coalition for Inclusive Education, an initiative which brings together organisations that share a commitment to advance Inclusive Education in Australia, have developed a 10-year plan[31] (Driving change: A roadmap for achieving inclusive education in Australia) to help realise inclusive education and prevent the violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation of students with disability. This plan has been endorsed by specialist organisations across the country.[32]

CYDA recommends the uptake of Driving change: A roadmap for achieving inclusive education in Australia to promote equitable opportunities in the labour market. To achieve this plan, the commitment and shared responsibility of the Australian and all state and territory governments is required.

Provide targeted support for students’ career-planning and transition

Recommendation

• Increase tailored supports for young people for young people with disability to engage in work experience and/or paid employment during school years

In 2015, CYDA released a report[33] into the experiences of young people with disability during their post-school transitions. The report found that, while the transition from school is a critical period and young people have a variety of options, “many young people with disability however have extremely poor post school transition experiences…[which] is impacting negatively on life outcomes, where there is low participation in employment and tertiary study, and social exclusion remains high. While there are pockets of good post school transition practice, generally programs and preparation for this transition are fragmented with minimal coordination and guidance regarding what should occur during this time.”[34]

Sadly, the situation today for students with disability remains very similar to that outlined in the above report.

As shown in Figure 1 (see Appendix A), the majority of respondents (80.2 per cent) in CYDA’s 2019 post-school reported that their school did not provide support or appropriate information about career planning, and more than half reported that they did not receive adequate support to think about and plan for their future (57.8 per cent), or that they did not find the assistance and information available through their school to be useful (52 per cent).

Fewer than one in five students report receiving assistance in understanding their strengths and skills for post-school transition; practical assistance such as resume-writing; or assistance to plan any study or training. Additionally, parents report feeling a significant degree of responsibility for the career-planning process, and note that the support provided is generally not tailored to students with disability, and therefore options are limited.

Comments from young people and families in our 2019 post-school transition survey demonstrates the limited support available in many places:

“Very little assist[ance] was given due to lack of options and lack of funding to individually support my son” - family of a young person with disability 19-20 years old, metropolitan VIC 

“Career counselling available was of extremely poor quality and not suited to the current issues for school-leavers. Huge disconnect between a regional public high school in a low-SES area about post-school life and particularly on scholarships to universities and open days, etc.” - young person with disability over 25 years old, metropolitan VIC 

“Only Work-Related Skills subject for VCAL no other assistance” - family of a young person with disability 17-18 years old, regional VIC 

“My daughter attended TAFE one 1/2 day a week and school 4 days on a life skills curriculum with a 2 hour a week extended work experience placement external to the school. I coordinated this program for my daughter. This is not normally available in NSW schools.” - family of a young person with disability 19-20 years old, regional NSW 

“Support for assessment for NDIS SLES program” - family of a young person with disability 19-20 years old, metropolitan ACT

Around three quarters of our survey respondents agreed that much more needs to be done to support post-school planning and to help students to achieve their goals (73.2 per cent). Suggestions for further investment include assistance with life skills, more teacher support, tailored work experience with interest and abilities, more community integration for students and more information for families.

Participation in work experience, paid and unpaid, during the last years of secondary schools is consistently a strong indicator of post school success.[35] Young people with disability who exit school with a job are more likely to maintain a positive career trajectory than those who do not.[36] In our 2019 post-school survey, less than half of respondents reported having the opportunity to undertake work experience and had assistance to organise this.

With most employers requiring applicants to hold previous work experience[37], more needs to be done to support young people with disability partake in work experience and part-time employment during their school years to support their full transition to the labour market.

Address transition from school inconsistencies around the country

Recommendations

• The recommendations for students with disability in the Review of senior secondary pathways into work, further education and training be adopted and evaluated
• Improve national consistency in post-school transition activities, building on what works best around the country
• Include young people with disability and families in every stage of developing new post-school transition activities
• Ensure post-school transition programs are well-structured, outcome-oriented and student-focused
• Start post-school planning activities for all students with disability by at least the age of 15
• Improve data collection about post-school transition programs, including their uptake, implementation and outcomes
• Review funding arrangements in all states and territories for school and post-school programs for students with disability 

The provision of current school programs for senior students with disability varies in every state and territory, which means the system is fragmented and inconsistent. The programs vary in terms of what is offered and the level of resourcing provided. The age for career-planning also varies significantly across states and territories, with some starting for students in Year 7 (e.g. Victoria) and others not until Years 10 or 11.

In our 2019 post-school survey, around 80 per cent of our survey respondents (n=68) reported that they have received a form of career planning at school, however for most students this did not start until the later years of high school. Almost 30 per cent of these students reported they started receiving career-planning support in Year 12, with around 45 per cent receiving support in either Year 10 or 11 (see Table 6, Appendix A). Fewer than five per cent reported receiving support in Year 9.

Additionally, many families report they are not aware of these programs. This may be for a number of reasons, including the student not finishing school or not being provided appropriate support and opportunities to develop skills due to lower expectations and exclusion.

Reflections from young people[38]:

“Year 12, yes, but it was very limited - one session with a teacher to talk about what we were thinking of doing. Many people were pushed earlier into trades at TAFE, rather than focusing on them getting into university. Students with disabilities that impacted on their results, who stayed until year 11 and 12 were pressured into segregated 'life skills' classes, meaning they did not receive their HSC (this happened to my brother, even though he has ASD, but was completely capable of completing the HSC)” - young person with Disability aged over 25 years old, metropolitan VIC

“Begin the process a lot earlier than end of year 11. Presume competence. Inform, encourage and support families to be involved in the process. Give them all the options and assist in making these happen. Education department to work with NDIS to understand, support and fund real transitions” - family of a student with disability aged 17-18 years old, metropolitan NSW.

The report on the Review of senior secondary pathways into work, further education and training[39], to which CYDA provided a submission[40], highlighted the importance of starting the transition from school and career planning activities early, with specific recommendations that all students with disability should have an individual post-school transition plan.

Students with disability may require extra or different support for their transition from secondary school, and it is beneficial to start the career planning earlier. A number of studies have confirmed that post-school transition planning for young people with disability needs to include five key areas:[41]

1. Student-focused planning
2. Student development
3. Family involvement
4. Program structure
5. Interagency collaboration.

CYDA recommends taking a unified approach across the country and introducing career-planning activities that include the five key areas for all students with disability by the age of 15 years. To build the skills of the students it will be important to include practical subjects as well as work experience or exposure to different work industries where students have expressed interest.

It is critical that young people with disability, and families, are involved in the development of any new transition planning activities or programs from the beginning and throughout the development and implementation process.

“Working with young people in defining the problems and issues that affect them can lead to new understandings about the source of such problems as well as potential responses. Young people’s involvement also helps to build credibility and rapport for the project and ensure that their values and attitudes are accounted for.

Pragmatically, a Participatory Design approach helps us to develop interventions that are engaging to young people and therefore are more likely to be used, increasing the overall reach and impact of the intervention.”

-Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre, 2012[42] 

Improve opportunities for young people with disability to develop social capital

Recommendations

• Address the social exclusion that children and young people with disability experience in community and education settings
• Create and strengthen leadership and networking opportunities for young people with disability

Social capital helps mitigate the risks of the increasingly competitive labour market[43]. Those who have diverse networks, resources and contacts to draw on have increased ability to connect with employers and access job opportunities. Ultimately, who we know can help us get ahead in life.[44]

Australians with disability tend to have less access to social capital than those without disability.[45] This starts early in life, with children with disability being excluded in early learning education, school and recreational settings, and flows on to future life stages. Young people with disability are likely to experience social exclusion at higher rates than their counterparts without disability, and are less likely to have social contact with friends and family or have a voice in the community.[46] The rate of exclusion experienced by children and young people with disability is further entrenched by overt and covert segregation in school settings (see page 8).

The social exclusion children and young people face must be addressed. Fundamentally, as it is human right to enjoy full inclusion and participation in the community, but also as a means to build social capital. This includes addressing the exclusion children and young people with disability face in community settings and creating and fostering networking and leadership opportunities.

Improve access to higher education

Recommendations

• Invest in strategies and initiatives that remove barriers to higher education for young people with disability
• Improve mechanisms for students in education settings to make complaints
• Improve national data collection of complaints of discrimination and harassment in education settings
• Monitor the impact of funding reforms on the participation rates of higher education students with disability

Students with disability continue to face significant barriers to accessing and participating in higher education. These structural and systemic barriers include inflexible pathways from school to tertiary education, lack of adequate awareness and capacity in educational institutes to understand and accommodate the needs of students with disability, the timing and extent of education and career planning for people with disability and low availability of appropriate and accessible information in relation to education and employment pathways.[47] The limited aspirations of people with disability, instilled by those around them, is also a barrier.[48]

While it is encouraging to see that the enrolment rates of students with disability in higher education is steadily increasingly, people with disability still remain are still underrepresented higher education attainment. Only 17 per cent of people with disability aged 20 and over have a bachelor degree or higher, compared to 35 per cent for individuals without disability.[49] In comparison, people with disability are more likely to have attained a certificate-level qualification (28 per cent) than those without disability (23 per cent).[50]

The impact of exclusion and poor post-school planning opportunities on students’ further education is highlighted by our 2019 post-school survey respondents. Almost half of respondents reported to have completed Year 12 but have not completed further education, and around 21 per cent reporting that they have completed Year 10 or 11 as their highest educational attainment to date (Table 4 in Appendix A). Thirteen per cent have completed some form of higher degree or certificate.

Over the last three decades, Australia has experienced a major shift in the types of industries that form the labour market, with higher skilled occupations that are categorised as usually requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher accounting for 45.1 per cent of employment growth[51]. In contrast, lower skilled occupations that generally require only Certificate I or secondary education has accounted for 9.4 per cent of employment growth.[52] Without addressing the barriers to accessing and completing further education, young people with disability are being set up to fail before they even enter the ever-increasing professionalised workforce.

Investment in mechanisms to remove and better monitor the barriers to education experienced by young people with disability is required. This includes improved procedures for student complaints and data collection on harassment and victimisation in education settings, improvement of outreach activities and information provision in secondary school, and ensuring educational institutions understand and protect the rights of students with disability.[53] Further, the aspirations of young people with disability, by their own perception and those around them, must be raised and fostered (see page 21).

CYDA also recommends that the impact on students with disability of the recent university funding reform be closely examined. The reform[54] has introduced a shift to how university courses are funded with increased costs for individuals. Social commentators have expressed concern that the changes will increases barriers to education for prospective students from disadvantaged backgrounds. While it’s unclear how these funding changes will affect young people with disability, considering the group already has increased costs of living in comparison to those without disability, the impacts must be closely monitored to ensure the reform does not produce financial or inclusion barriers to education. 

 Address direct and indirect discrimination in the workplace

While it is important to ensure that young people with disability are equipped with the same resources as their peers as they transition into the labour market, interventions also need to target direct and indirect discrimination. For example, despite higher education attainment being well linked with employment, employment outcomes for graduates with disability remains lower than those without disability. In 2019, undergraduates with a disability had a full-time employment rate which was six percentage points lower than undergraduates without disability (66.6 per cent compared to 72.6 per cent).[55]

Further, people with disability who hold either a diploma or a bachelor’s degree or higher are less likely than those without disability to have wages or a salary as their main source of income.[56] With the increased barriers to finding employment, many people with disability must rely on income support payments[57], such as the Disability Support Pension or the lower JobSeeker or Youth Allowances. These payments are widely regarded as being inadequate in supporting the cost of living. As such, people with disability are grossly overrepresented in experiencing poverty.[58]

“I am 35 and have an undergraduate degree in Visual Arts, a Master's degree in Art Administration and a Postgraduate Diploma in Politics and Public Policy.

I have applied for a graduate position with Commonwealth departments but was unsuccessful. I applied for a graduate position with the NDIA and thought, as a disabled person, I might have stood a chance there. I received no feedback at all. I have come to the realisation that I may never get a job.”

- Fiona Bridger, participant on ABC’s Q&A program, 2018

The extent which young people can grow their skills, continue to be learn and be challenged is contingent on the opportunities they are provided. As such, societal attitudes ultimately can determine what a young person with disability can achieve in the workforce.

Change community attitudes and employer misconceptions

Recommendations

• Increase targeted, evidence-based interventions addressing the negative and misinformed attitudes of employers. These development strategies must include the meaningful involvement of young people with disability
• Assure that the Australian Human Rights Commission, and other independent oversight agencies, receive sufficient resourcing to safeguard the rights of young people with disability in the workforce

Lack of awareness and misconceptions about people with disability remains a significant barrier to employment, including for young people. A decade on from the influential Shut Out report identifying that few employers were willing to hire people with disability[59], almost two thirds of employers are largely uncommitted to employing jobseekers with disability[60]. Despite research finding that people with disability take fewer days off and less sick leave, and have a higher retention rate[61],  a recent community survey[62] demonstrated that there are persistent underlying community beliefs that people with disability are less productive employees than those without disability.

Concerningly, this same survey demonstrated that one in five people agreed or strongly agreed that employers should be allowed to refuse to hire people with disability, with a further one in four ambivalent on the topic. Compounded by the discriminatory lens with which society often views young people, it raises the question that even if young people with disability were fully equipped with every skill and resource necessary to thrive in the workforce – would the workforce ever even grant them a fair chance?

In an effort to increase employer demand, in 2017 the Department of Social Services commissioned a review[63] into employers’ (in open employment) attitudes and beliefs around hiring people with disability. The report found that employers regarded hiring people with disability as ‘extra work’, and the perceived extra support and supervision requirements acted as a major barrier to recruitment. Contrary to this, ABS data shows the majority (82 per cent) of unemployed persons with disability do not require additional support from their employer to work.[64]

Employers’ lack of confidence about the process of employing people with disability and the potential need to make workplace adjustments has also been reported as a barrier.[65] In contrast, employers with previous experience working with people with disability tend to hold favorable attitudes toward workers with disability compared to those who have not.[66]

Recruitment process, and lack of inclusive recruitment processes, also is a barrier to employment for people with disability.[67]  CYDA often hears from young people in our membership that they believed recruitment processes dismissed their abilities before employers even had the chance to get to know them and the value that they could add. Further, some fear that disclosure of their disability will decrease their chances of getting a job.

Whether it stems from lack of experience, misunderstanding or overt discrimination – the result is the same for young people with disability. Their right to work on an equal basis to others is are denied along with all the social, health and financial benefits that come with meaningful employment.

An important mechanism in ensuring employers comply with human rights charters and anti-discrimination legislation is independent oversight agencies, such as the Australia Human Rights Commission (AHRC). In 2018-29, more than a quarter (27 per cent) of disability complaints received by the AHRC were about employment.[68] The AHRC then acts on these complaints and works with people with disability and the employer to resolve to the complaint. Without sufficiently resourced bodies, individual complaints risk going unheard and discriminatory employers will not be held accountable.

Intervention is required to address the existing negative and misinformed attitudes society holds about young people with disability. In line with evidence, these interventions are required at multiple inter-related policy levels; the personal, organisational (i.e. workplaces and employers) and government and legislative levels.[69] Young people with disability must be meaningfully involved in every stage of these processes for the interventions to address what needs to be changed effectively.

At the organisational level of intervention, negative attitudes about employing young people must be addressed. This includes addressing misconceptions about young people with disability’s capabilities and informing employers of people with disability’s legislative rights. The skills, talents and distinct worldviews young people with disability can bring to the workforce must also be highlighted. 

Address low expectations of post-school transitions of young people with disability

Recommendations

• Counter the narrative of ‘low expectations’ for young with disability through concrete actions and monitor post-school outcomes for students with disability

Expectations of post-school outcomes, by the young person with disability and those around them, is known to be linked with employment outcomes[70], with those who are perceived with low expectations facing increased barriers to employment. Discriminatory attitudes from schools, communities, and government and policy approaches gatekeep the young person’s possibilities and undermine their right to social and economic participation on an equal basis.

In 2015, CYDA undertook research[71] into the post-school transitions experiences of young people with disability. The research found that of the young people consulted, systemic low expectations regarding the capability, value and individuality heavily impacted on their post-school transition experiences.

Reflections from young people with disability^[72]:

“Year 12, yes, but it was very limited - one session with a teacher to talk about what we were thinking

“People treat you like you’re dirt and talk down to you. Some act like they might catch it off you if they stand too close. They lie and dismiss you so they don’t have to deal with you.

“Discrimination at school and failure to provide supports I’m legally entitled to meant I lost access to supports and developed severe mental health issues. I’m still unemployed.”

“I tried the employment services but they could not help me as they said I was too disabled.”

“I wish my teachers had believed in me.”

“My teacher said I could not work with animals. I did a transition program working one day a week over two terms at the local pound”

Five years later, low expectations from those around young people with disability continue to be a significant barrier. Almost two thirds (63.7 per cent) of respondents in our 2019 National Education Survey[73] reported feeling that the school did not have high expectations of the student with disability regarding employment or further education after school. Further, our post-school survey also found that 70 per cent of the young respondents were not encouraged to complete or to choose subjects to lead a good ATAR score for higher education (see Table 5, Appendix A).

For many young people with disability, and particularly young people with intellectual disability, transition from school directly into Australian Disability Enterprises (ADEs) is still presented as the best or only option.[74] Often characterised as low-skilled work-experience, ADEs do not offer people with disability the ability to develop transferable skills that could lead to open employment or a full wage[75]. In 2014, less than one per cent of people with disability in ADEs moved into open employment[76].

Further, the segregated nature of ADEs and below minimum wage young people in ADEs receive is a clear violation of a multitude of human rights under the CRPD.[77] They exclude young people with disability from the rest of the community and exploit their labour for a wage[78] that prevents them the ability to live independently.

Despite this, according to recent NDIA data[79], of the young participants in the NDIS who are ‘employed’, 35 per cent of this group are working in ADEs. In comparison, only 41 per cent of young NDIS participants who are employed are in open employment and receive an award wage.

Develop evidence-based programs to support young people with disability secure work

Transition into the labour market, and early experiences once there, are complex issues for all young people, and young people with disability face added barriers. They experience the intersectionality of systemic disadvantage and oppression of both being a person with disability and a young person – with this disadvantage being even further amplified by other demographic factors, such as socio-economic status, ethnicity, gender or sexual diversity, or living in a regional or rural area. Yet, despite these significant challenges, there is no national coordinated solution to the social problem.

Develop fit-for-purpose employment programs and supports

Recommendations

• Improve monitoring and public release of caseload and outcome data of young people with disability in employment programs
• Ensure young people with disability across Australia can access age-appropriate employment programs that are designed to address barriers to employment 

There is currently no national employment program for young people with disability. Some find themselves in jobactive, a program which was found by a Senate Inquiry to not address the bar