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The Recent Decline in the Employment of Persons with Disabilities in South Africa, 1998-2006

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  • Sophie Mitra

    (Fordham University, Department of Economics)

Abstract

This paper shows that there has been a significant decline in the employment and labor force participation of persons with disabilities in South Africa over the 1998 through 2006 period. Disability is defined based on activity limitations. Data are from the October and the General Household Surveys. The paper also deals with the possible causes of the decline. While several causes can be invoked, preliminary evidence suggests that the rise of the Disability Grant program might be responsible for a part of the decline. Recommendations are made for future research and data collection on disability and employment.

Suggested Citation

  • Sophie Mitra, 2008. "The Recent Decline in the Employment of Persons with Disabilities in South Africa, 1998-2006," Fordham Economics Discussion Paper Series dp2008-12, Fordham University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:frd:wpaper:dp2008-12
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    File URL: https://archive.fordham.edu/ECONOMICS_RESEARCH/PAPERS/dp2008_12_mitra.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Geeta Kingdon & John Knight, 2007. "Unemployment in South Africa, 1995--2003: Causes, Problems and Policies," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 16(5), pages 813-848, November.
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    6. Kidd, Michael P. & Sloane, Peter J. & Ferko, Ivan, 2000. "Disability and the labour market: an analysis of British males," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 961-981, November.
    7. Kingdon, Geeta Gandhi & Knight, John, 2004. "Unemployment in South Africa: The Nature of the Beast," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 391-408, March.
    8. Servaas van der Berg & Ronelle Burger & Rulof Burger & Megan Louw & Derek Yu, 2005. "Trends in poverty and inequality since the political transition," Working Papers 01/2005, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    9. Robert Haveman & Barbara Wolfe, 1990. "The Economic Well-Being of the Disabled: 1962-84," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 25(1), pages 32-54.
    10. John Bound & Timothy Waidmann, 2002. "Accounting for Recent Declines in Employment Rates among Working-Aged Men and Women with Disabilities," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 37(2), pages 231-250.
    11. Servaas van der Berg & Megan Louw, 2003. "Changing Patterns of South African income distribution: Towards time series estimates of distribution and poverty," Working Papers 02/2003, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    12. Servaas Van Der Berg & Megan Louw, 2004. "Changing Patterns Of South African Income Distribution: Towards Time Series Estimates Of Distribution And Poverty1," South African Journal of Economics, Economic Society of South Africa, vol. 72(3), pages 546-572, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sylvain Chareyron & Naomie Mahmoudi, 2022. "The effects of disability benefits on the employment of low-skilled youth: Evidence from France," Erudite Working Paper 2022-09, Erudite.
    2. Mitra, Sophie, 2010. "Disability Cash Transfers in the Context of Poverty and Unemployment: The Case of South Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(12), pages 1692-1709, December.
    3. Mizunoya, Suguru & Mitra, Sophie, 2013. "Is There a Disability Gap in Employment Rates in Developing Countries?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 28-43.
    4. Parodi, Giuliana & Sciulli, Dario, 2012. "Disability and Social Exclusion Dynamics in Italian Households," MPRA Paper 42445, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Mani, Subha & Mitra, Sophie & Sambamoorthi, Usha, 2018. "Dynamics in health and employment: Evidence from Indonesia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 297-309.
    6. Derek Asuman & Charles Godfred Ackah & Frank Agyire-Tettey, 2021. "Disability and Household Welfare in Ghana: Costs and Correlates," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 42(4), pages 633-649, December.
    7. Mitra, Sophie & Posarac, Aleksandra & Vick, Brandon, 2011. "Disability and poverty in developing countries : a snapshot from the world health survey," Social Protection Discussion Papers and Notes 62564, The World Bank.
    8. Clifford Afoakwah & Fatima Dauda, 2016. "Employment status and educational attainment among disabled Ghanaians," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2016-56, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    9. Andrews Amenyo, 2022. "Leveraging the Socio-Economic Status of Persons With Disabilities Through Employment," International Journal of Science and Business, IJSAB International, vol. 9(1), pages 94-122.
    10. Clifford Afoakwah & Fatima Dauda, 2016. "Employment status and educational attainment among disabled Ghanaians," WIDER Working Paper Series 056, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    11. Giuliana Parodi & Dario Sciulli, 2019. "Disability and Social Exclusion in Italian Households," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 144(2), pages 767-784, July.
    12. repec:frd:wpaper:dp2012-03 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Mitra, Sophie & Posarac, Aleksandra & Vick, Brandon, 2013. "Disability and Poverty in Developing Countries: A Multidimensional Study," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 1-18.

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