Around seven in 10 (69%) disabled workers earn less than £15 an hour, according to new analysis of official statistics published by the TUC today.

The analysis – published ahead of the TUC’s disabled employees conference which starts in Bournemouth today – finds that disabled people are much more likely to be paid less than £15 per hour than non-disabled peers. 

Half of non-disabled employees (50%) earn less than £15 per hour, compared to seven in 10 (69%) disabled employees. 

Regional and gender analysis  

The new TUC analysis shows that in some parts of the country, higher numbers of disabled employees earn less than £15 an hour. 

In the North East and Wales (92% and 94%), more than nine in 10 disabled employees earn less than £15 an hour, compared to around two in five (37% and 42% respectively) non-disabled workers. 

And the situation is even worse for disabled women employees. Seven in 10 disabled women (70%) earn less than £15 an hour, compared to just four in 10 (44%) non-disabled men.  

What needs to change?

To address the inequality faced by disabled employees, the TUC is calling on ministers to bring in a legal requirement for employers to regularly report on how much they pay disabled workers compared to non-disabled workers. 

And the union body wants to see fines for employers that do not deliver disabled employees’ legal right to reasonable adjustments. 

The TUC says ministers must also raise the national minimum wage to £15 per hour as soon as possible, and stamp out insecure work for disabled workers by banning zero-hours contracts and putting an end to fire and rehire. 

TUC General Secretary, Paul Nowak, comments on the inequality that disabled workers face:

“Disabled workers are struggling to make ends meet in this cost-of-living crisis, with rocketing bills and soaring inflation. 

“Every worker deserves a decent job on decent pay. Being disabled should not mean you’re paid any less or are stuck on worse terms and conditions. 

“The government has done very little so far to support disabled workers. It’s time for ministers to increase the minimum wage to £15 per hour as soon as possible and put an end to insecure work by banning zero hours contracts. 

“And they must also introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting to shine a light on inequality at work. Without this, millions of disabled people face a future of lower pay and in-work poverty.” 

Amelia Brand

Amelia Brand is the Editor for HRreview, and host of the HR in Review podcast series. With a Master’s degree in Legal and Political Theory, her particular interests within HR include employment law, DE&I, and wellbeing within the workplace. Prior to working with HRreview, Amelia was Sub-Editor of a magazine, and Editor of the Environmental Justice Project at University College London, writing and overseeing articles into UCL’s weekly newsletter. Her previous academic work has focused on philosophy, politics and law, with a special focus on how artificial intelligence will feature in the future.