This was a manifesto commitment at the last election, and the TUC highlight cuts to Employment and Support Allowance as a key factor in this, something Mencap campaigned against heavily.
Dan Scorer, Head of Policy at the learning disability charity Mencap, said:
“The Government made an important public commitment at the last election to halve the employment gap experience by disabled people, yet there’s been no plan how they will do this. Instead, as this report from the TUC suggests, added barriers have been created in the form of cuts to Employment and Support Allowance which will push disabled people further from work and in to poverty.
“Currently just two out of 10 people with a learning disability have a job, despite the fact 8 out of 10 working age people with a mild or moderate learning disability could work if they had the right support. The Government now needs to outline how it plans to address the core issues that result in such low employment figures. These include the barriers employers perceive in taking on disabled employees, the in-effective Government Work Programme, Job Centre advisors that don’t have adequate training on learning disability and vital support being taken away by cuts to benefits and social care.”
“At a time when people with a learning disability have experienced severe cuts to benefits and social care, it’s crucial the Government explains how it will achieve its welcome aim of getting 1 million more disabled people into work this Parliament”