Access to Integrated Employment

Since 1988, Access to Integrated Employment (AIE) has described trends in day and employment services and outcomes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). This research project explores the factors that contribute to employment outcomes at multiple levels: individual achievement, employment support practices, service provider engagement, and state policy reform. AIE is funded by the Administration on Disabilities, Administration for Community Living.

AIE’s efforts have impacted employment supports, informed complementary research and evaluation projects, led to a model of employment systems change, supported individuals with IDD to tell their employment story, and facilitated the use of data as a performance management strategy. Explore Access to Integrated Employment projects below!

The image has a circle in the middle that says Access to Integrated Employment. The circle has arrows pointing outward to circles that say (clockwise) Employment Supports, Research and Evaluation, Systems Change and Policy, Story Telling, Data and Performance Measurement.


Projects Supported by Access to Integrated Employment

StateData.info

new sd logo

StateData.info is a compilation of federal, state, and self-collected data sets on employment of people with IDD. StateData.info allows users to generate customized charts, conduct their own analyses, and download free publications that analyze critical issues and important findings in the area of disability and employment. Go to StateData.info to learn more!

National Survey of State IDD Agencies' Day and Employment Services

This annual survey describes the nature of day and employment services for individuals with IDD. The data collected is summarized annually in the National Report (below) and available on StateData.info. Read summaries of previously collected data.

Blue Book 2017StateData: The National Report on Employment Services and Outcomes Through 2017

Access the latest information about employment and economic self-sufficiency for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Both national and state-level statistics are included.

Download the PDF here*
Download the report narrative, no tables (Accessible PDF)

State Agency Promising Practices

This promising practices database highlights innovative policies and strategies that state IDD agencies are using to increase integrated employment opportunities. Go here to learn more: State Agency Promising Practices

Service Provider Promising Practices

The national landscape is changing, with an increasing emphasis on community employment opportunities for individuals with IDD. This activity focuses on service providers engaged in practices that reflect individual integrated employment as a priority outcome. Go here to learn more: Service Provider Promising Practices

Think Work Stories

Think Work Stories shares stories of people with IDD who are thriving in competitive jobs in their communities. The stories highlight these individuals’ achievements, and also showcase how state agency staff have helped them get hired and maintain fulfilling careers. Go here to learn more: Think Work Stories

Social Security Administration Data Trends: Key Findings on Work Incentive Programs (2000–2021)

DataNote No. 84, 2023

DataNote 84 summarizes Social Security Administration data from 2000-2021 on work incentives and their underutilization by Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients. It also compares younger recipients’ likelihood of working and participating in work incentives to older SSI recipients. Lastly, it examines the employment rate trends of SSI recipients across four disability sub-groups: intellectual disorders, developmental disability, autism spectrum disorders, and mental health disorders.

American Community Survey (2021)

DataNote No. 83, 2023

This DataNote summarizes employment and poverty rates across the US in 2021. These data are compared for people with no disability, people with any disability, and people with a cognitive disability, which indicate that people with disabilities continue to have less success in the labor market, and a greater likelihood of being underemployed, compared to individuals without a disability.

Vocational Rehabilitation Services and Outcomes of People with Intellectual Disabilities: 2013–2022

DataNote No. 82, 2023

This DataNote describes the characteristics, services received, and employment outcomes of adults with an intellectual disability (ID) who exited from the vocational rehabilitation (VR) program during fiscal years (FY) 2013 through 2022, in the 50 states and the District of Columbia (DC). We compare the findings of adults with ID to the findings of people with other disabilities.

Intellectual and developmental disabilities agencies’ employment and day services (1988–2021)

Data Note 87 summarizes findings core findings from the Institute for Community Inclusion’s (ICI) National Survey of State Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Agencies’ Employment and Day Services through FY 2021. These data focus on participation in integrated employment, community-based non-work, and facility-based services (both work and non-work).

NCI 2023

Many people with intellectual and developmental disabilities want to work, but this is often not reflected in their service plans.