Disability and supported employment: impact on employment, income, and allowances

In this article, we examine supported employment and its impact on the level of employment, disposable income, and sum of allowances, targeting a group of individuals with disabilities. We have particularly focused on individuals with psychiatric disabilities. Supported employment is a vocational rehabilitation service with an empowerment approach that has competitive employment as an expressed goal. Data collected from two Swedish organizations, providing services based on supported employment, have been used. Two groups have been considered: one group focusing on individuals who have received vocational rehabilitation, according to the supported employment approach, and the other group focusing on individuals who declined supported employment (control group). The groups have been examined according to a 'before-and-after the intervention' design. Outcome measures have been retrospectively analyzed. The results indicate that the individuals who received supported employment were hired faster, earned a higher disposable income, and at the same time, had lower individual allowances. The same pattern as that for the overall population emerged for individuals with psychiatric disorders. Vocational rehabilitation based on the principles of supported employment may be very effective for individuals to gain employment, a better disposable income, and a substantial cutback in allowances. The intervention should be tailored according to individual needs rather than organizational rules.