Disability, Labour Market Participation and the Effect of Educational Level: Compared to What?

The aim of the article is to discuss the relationship between disability, educational level and employment, and to scrutinize how disability and education interact to impact employment – a link that has been observed in several studies. The article uses analyses of EU-SILC data to illustrate that conclusions about whether higher education reduces labour-market inequalities between disabled and non-disabled, depends in part on the analytical strategies used, which in turn are guided by implicit or explicit theoretical assumptions about the mechanisms regulating the relationship between education and employment opportunities. The article argues that the issue is more multifaceted than recognised by Nordic disability policy, which claims that higher education is the route to reducing inequalities and enhancing societal inclusion for disabled people.