Employment of disabled people in Norway and the United Kingdom. Comparing two welfare regimes and why this is difficult

Abstract

The aim of this article is twofold. First, we explore the differences in employment of disabled people between Norway and the United Kingdom, and to what degree differences in employment rates are due to variation in definition and measures of disability. Secondly, we discuss the significance of the two countries belonging to different welfare regimes when it comes to disabled people's relation to the labour market. Most of the data on disabled people's labour market participation stems from the Labour Force Surveys in the two countries, and the 2005 figures are used as a basis. The results indicate that the employment rate of disabled people is higher in the UK than in Norway. The article argues that this is first and foremost due to different ways of defining and measuring disability. The article illustrates why comparing two welfare states can be difficult. Are different welfare regimes of any significance for disabled people's engagement with the labour market? The results indicate that the use of different welfare means within the two regimes may lead to similar results. © 2011 Nordic Network on Disability Research.