There are around 101 million people with some form of disability living in the European Union.
This equates to 27 per cent of the EU population over the age of 16, corresponding to slightly over one in four adults. They face several inequalities, which make their lives difficult.
The EU Commission calls for decent standards of living for all persons with disabilities. This includes independent living, quality social and employment services, accessible and inclusive housing, adequate social protection, participation in lifelong learning, and a strengthened social economy.
There might be several aspects to look at in comparing the status of disabled people across Europe. Socioeconomic differences between people with and without disability are particularly significant.
Various metrics highlight the significant disparity faced by individuals with disabilities. We examine these economic and social discrepancies.
What qualifies as a disability?
According to Eurostat, disability primarily denotes constraints individuals face in performing specific tasks due to health issues lasting more than half a year. A person with a disability has encountered challenges in fundamental actions like vision, hearing, mobility, memory, among others.
The widespread occurrence of disabilities throughout Europe
The percentage of individuals with some type of disability significantly differs across the European Union, fluctuating between 14.6 percent in Bulgaria and 38.4 percent in Latvia in 2022, as reported by Eurostat.
Based on the information provided, disabilities are classified into two categories: "some limitations" and "severe limitations."
Within the European Union, among those aged 16 years and older, 19.8 percent indicated that they experienced some limitations, whereas 7.2 percent stated that they faced significant restrictions in their daily activities because of health issues.
In 2022, the percentage of individuals with severe disabilities varied from 2.7 percent in Bulgaria to 10.3 percent in Estonia.
It surpassed the EU average in both France and Germany, where nearly 10 percent experienced significant disabilities. Meanwhile, in the UK, 11.5 percent indicated they faced severe disability issues in 2018.
What accounts for the considerable variation in disability rates among European countries?
The statistics originate from self-reported information; hence, they are influenced to some degree by the respondents’ personal perceptions along with their societal and cultural contexts. Consequently, the subjective element plays a crucial role in explaining these discrepancies.
Nevertheless, these "statistics are regarded as pertinent and trustworthy indicators of the overall health condition of communities," Eurostat emphasized.
These data points hold significant importance for analyzing trends as well as gauging the socioeconomic differences between individuals with disabilities and those without any limitations.
The economic disparity between individuals with and without disabilities is significant.
Facing the threat of poverty represents a significant socioeconomic disparity between individuals with disabilities and those without limitations in their activities.
The percentage of individuals with disabilities facing the risk of poverty in the EU varied from 13.6 percent in Slovakia to 44.4 percent in Estonia.
This statistic was generally lower in the Nordic countries (with the exception of Sweden) whereas it was more elevated in the Baltic states.
As the risk of poverty in the EU substantially differs, comparing the gap between disabled and non-disabled people in each country provides more meaningful insights.
People with disabilities face a higher likelihood of experiencing poverty.
Individuals without disabilities have a lower likelihood of facing poverty compared to those who have disabilities.
This trend was observed across all 34 European nations for which data was accessible (including 27 EU member states, 5 candidate countries, and 2 EFTA members).
Among the EU population with disabilities, 20.5 percent faced the risk of poverty, as opposed to 14.5 percent for those without limitations.
In absolute terms, this disparity was least pronounced in Italy and Greece (at 1 and 2 percentage points – pp, respectively) within the European Union member states. The largest gap could be observed in Estonia at 26.5 percentage points, closely trailed by Lithuania with a difference of 21.4 percentage points, then Croatia at 20.3 percentage points, and Latvia at 19.5 percentage points.
The largest discrepancies were observed in Baltic nations, Croatia, and Bulgaria.
In thirteen European Union countries, the disparity between individuals with and without disabilities exceeded 10 percentage points, highlighting the significant disadvantage faced by those with disabilities in these regions.
The largest disparity was observed in the Baltic nations, along with Croatia and Bulgaria. Interestingly, this difference remained notably significant even in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Sweden, despite these countries having higher scores on the Social Justice Index from the Bertelsmann Stiftung compared to numerous others.
Italy and Greece stand out as the top nations with smaller disparities.
When examining the relative disparities (the ratio betweendisabled and nondisabled individuals), Italy and Greece showed the least difference. The likelihood of facing poverty was merely 1.1 times greater for those with disabilities compared to those without.
The biggest proportional difference was observed in Croatia (2.6 times), with Estonia and Ireland trailing close behind at 2.5 times each.
This disparity was more than double in eleven EU member states, indicating the greater economic vulnerability of individuals with disabilities compared to those without.
Unemployment is higher among disabled people
In 2022, the average unemployment rate within the European Union stood at 9.4 percent for individuals with disabilities as opposed to 6.1 percent for those without disabilities. With the exception of Czechia, every other EU country reported a higher unemployment rate among disabled persons.
The comparative discrepancy exceeded 2.5 in Hungary, Slovenia, and Lithuania. This indicates that the unemployment rate for individuals with disabilities was more than 2.5 times higher compared to those without disabilities in these nations.
The distinction becomes more apparent in employment.
The employment rate similarly serves as a crucial measure of the socioeconomic disparity between individuals with disabilities and those without.
In 2022, the disparity in employment rates for people with disabilities within the EU stood at 21.4 percentage points, as reported by the European Trade Union Institute. (ETUI) report written by Angelina Atanasova, who is associated with the European Social Observatory in Brussels as a researcher.
It ranged from 8.5 percentage points in Luxembourg to 37 percentage points in Ireland.
The disparity in employment between people with disabilities and those without exceeded 30 percentage points in nine European Union nations, equating to approximately one out of every three individuals. Leading this gap were Ireland, trailed closely by Croatia at 36 percentage points, Belgium at 35.3 percentage points, and Lithuania at 35 percentage points.
At the lower end of the spectrum, Luxembourg was succeeded by Denmark (9.9 percentage points), Portugal (13.1 percentage points), Italy (14 percentage points), and Spain (14.6 percentage points).
Although the disability employment gap was greater than the EU average in Germany (by 24 percentage points), it was marginally smaller in France (at 20.8 percentage points).
What might be the possible reasons behind these considerable gaps across the EU countries?
As Atanasova noted in her ETUI report, this disparity primarily stems from variations in institutional elements such as the enforcement of nationwide anti-discrimination legislation, welfare state systems, and particular social support policies.
There has been no notable advancement in job opportunities.
The disparity in employment rates for people with disabilities within the European Union has remained relatively constant over the past nine years. There was no notable enhancement in this area from 2014 to 2022.
The disparity fell to its minimum point of 21.4 percentage points in 2022, down from 22.7 percentage points in 2014.
These statistics reveal that individuals with disabilities consistently face disadvantages in the job market relative to those without disabilities.
Atanasova noted that participation in employment is crucial for individuals with disabilities to attain economic independence and social integration.
The effect of social transfers is significant in decreasing the likelihood of falling into poverty.
According to Eurostat data, social transfers have a significant effect on reducing the risk of poverty.
In 2022, 67.1 percent of the EU population with disabilities faced the threat of poverty; however, once social transfers (including benefits, allowances, and pensions) were factored in, this percentage dropped to 20.5.
Disability benefits higher in Nordic countries
Some countries allocate more resources for disabled people in Europe while the share of disability benefits within the total expenditure on social protection is significantly low.
In 2021, the average share of disability benefits within the total expenditure on social protection benefits was 6.9 per cent in the EU.
Once certain EFTA and candidate countries were incorporated into the analysis, Denmark showed the highest percentage with 16.8%, closely trailed by Norway at 15.8%, Iceland at 14.9%, and Luxembourg at 11.4%.
In Turkey, disabled individuals received the smallest portion of benefits at just 3.1 percent, trailed by Malta with 3.4 percent, Cyprus with 3.4 percent, and Greece with 3.9 percent.
This share was higher in the Nordic countries. Among the EU's "Big Four," the share was slightly higher in Germany than the EU whereas France, Italy, and Spain reported lower benefit shares.
Looking at the nominal values, the gap becomes wider. In 2021, disability benefits per person ranged from €27 in Turkey to €3,162 in Norway. The EU average was €644. T
These numbers represent disability benefits as part of the overall spending on social protection benefits. Approximately €287.8 billion was expended by EU member states on disability benefits.
In the Nordic nations, both the highest disability benefits per individual and their proportion among total disability benefits were observed.
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