AUSTRALIANS WHO DEVELOPED A PROFOUND OR SEVERE DISABILITY


KEY INSIGHTS

• 4.6% of Australians developed a profound or severe disability(1) between 2006 and 2016.(2)
• Older people(3) who developed a profound or severe disability were more than one-and-a-half times as likely as older people who did not develop a profound or severe disability to begin living with their non-dependent children(4) (6.1% compared with 3.6%).
• Working age people(5) who developed a profound or severe disability were more than two-and-a-half times more likely to leave the labour force(6) than working age people who did not develop a profound or severe disability (40% compared with 15%).

INTRODUCTION

Over the coming decades, the number of people with a profound or severe disability is expected to steadily increase, placing increased pressure on government resources and exacerbating socio-economic disadvantage.(7)

This article complements data collected in the Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers and other ABS surveys, by drawing on the Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) to analyse pathways for people who developed a profound or severe disability. The ACLD uses data from the Census of Population and Housing to create a rich longitudinal picture of Australian society. This article uses data from the three-wave ACLD, which links a 5% sample of data from the 2006, 2011 and 2016 Censuses.(8)


WHO DEVELOPED A PROFOUND OR SEVERE DISABILITY

The ACLD shows that 4.6% (849,600) of Australians developed a profound or severe disability between 2006 and 2016, meaning they needed help with one or more of the core activities of daily living:

• Self-care (showering, bathing, dressing, eating, or going to the toilet).
• Mobility (moving around at home or away from home, or getting in or out of bed).
• Communication (understanding and being understood by family, friends, or strangers).(1)

Profound or severe disability is more prevalent among older people (aged 65 years and over).(9) 24% of older people(3) developed a profound or severe disability between 2006 and 2016, compared with 3.1% of working age people (aged 15-64 years).(5)


PEOPLE WHO DEVELOPED A PROFOUND OR SEVERE DISABILITY, Age by Sex, 2006 to 2016(2)

Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)


Profound or severe disability is also more prevalent among females, who tend to live longer than males.(10) Between 2006 and 2016, 5.1% of females developed a profound or severe disability, compared with 4.1% of males. Older females were particularly likely to develop this level of disability (27%, compared with 20% of older males).


LIVING ARRANGEMENTS

Historically, many people living with disability have relied on care from family members and other informal carers.(7)

Older people(3) who developed a profound or severe disability were more likely to live with their non-dependent children(4):

• 6.1% lived with non-dependent children in 2016 but not in 2006, compared with 3.6% of older people who didn’t develop a profound or severe disability.
• 7.0% lived with their non-dependent children in both 2016 and 2006, compared with 5.1% of older people who didn’t develop a profound or severe disability.

OLDER PEOPLE, Longitudinal living arrangements by Longitudinal disability status, 2006 to 2016(2)(3)(4)

Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)


HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS

People with a disability can face significant challenges in securing appropriate housing or accommodation. These include a shortage of accessible housing, and socio-economic disadvantage (which is often compounded by disability).(7)

The ACLD shows that working age people(5) who developed a profound or severe disability were:

• Less likely to live in owner-occupied households. 7.1% moved from renting in 2006 to owner-occupied households in 2016, compared with 12% of working age people who didn’t develop this level of disability.
• More likely to remain in the rental market. 20% rented in both 2006 and 2016, compared with 12% of working age people who didn’t develop this level of disability.
• More likely to live in community housing.(11) 6.2% lived in community housing in both 2006 and 2016, while a further 4.5% moved into community housing during this period (compared with 1.7% and 0.9% of working age people who did not develop a profound or severe disability, respectively).

WORKING AGE PEOPLE, Longitudinal housing characteristics by Longitudinal disability status, 2006 to 2016(2)(5)

Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)


EMPLOYMENT CHARACTERISTICS

People with a profound or severe disability often have lower levels of labour force participation compared with those without this level of disability.(12) Complex social, economic, and cultural factors often make it difficult for people with disabilities to find and retain paid employment.(7)

Working age people(5) who developed a profound or severe disability were more likely to leave the labour force.(6) 40% left the labour force between 2006 and 2016, compared with 15% of people who didn’t develop a profound or severe disability during this time period.

People who developed a profound or severe disability were also more likely to remain out of the labour force. 42% were not in the labour force in 2006 or 2016, compared with 11% of those who didn’t develop a profound or severe disability during this period.(6)


WORKING AGE PEOPLE, Longitudinal labour force status by Longitudinal disability status, 2006 to 2016(2)(5)

Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)


For most age cohorts within the working age population(5), people who developed a profound or severe disability were more likely to leave the labour force.

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	MALES		FEMALES		PERSONS
Age group	Developed profound or severe disability	Didn't develop profound or severe disability	Developed profound or severe disability	Didn't develop profound or severe disability	Developed profound or severe disability	Didn't develop profound or severe disability
	(%)	(%)	(%)	(%)	(%)	(%)
15-24 years	29.9	3.5	26.5	10.7	28.7	7.0
25-34 years	43.0	4.5	32.3	9.9	37.4	7.3
35-44 years	46.5	5.6	34.3	7.8	39.6	6.7
45-54 years	53.7	17.7	40.9	22.1	46.7	19.9
55-64 years	48.3	47.9	26.9	35.7	37.3	41.7
Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)

For those who were employed in 2006 and 2016, people who developed a profound or severe disability were more likely to reduce their working hours. 57% worked fewer hours in 2016 than in 2006, compared with 43% of people who did not develop a profound or severe disability.(13)


WORKING AGE PEOPLE WHO REDUCED WORKING HOURS, Sex by Longitudinal disability status, 2006 to 2016(2)(5)

Source: Microdata: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (cat. no. 2080.0)


People who developed a severe or profound disability may also experience other restrictions around the type of work they can undertake. For more detailed information about employment restrictions, see the Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers.


MORE INFORMATION

The Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset (ACLD) offers unique insight by providing a longitudinal view of Australia by bringing together a 5% sample from the 2006, 2011 and 2016 Censuses.

Further information can be found using the ACLD TableBuilder or DataLab products. For more information about microdata subscription and access refer to the Microdata Entry Page.

Other ABS releases related to this topic:

• Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings, 2018 (cat. no. 4430.0)
• Microdata: Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia, 2018 (cat. no. 4430.0.30.002)
• Experiences of Violence and Personal Safety for People with Disability, 2016 (cat. no. 4431.0.55.003)
• ABS Sources of Disability Information, 2012-2016 (cat. no. 4431.0.55.002)
• Disability and Labour Force Participation, 2012 (cat. no. 4433.0.55.006)
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People with a Disability, 2012 (cat. no. 4433.0.55.005)

FOOTNOTES

1) People with a profound or severe disability are defined as those people needing help or assistance in one or more of the three core activity areas of self-care, mobility and communication, because of a disability, long-term health condition (lasting six months or more) or old age. For more information see ABS Sources of Disability Information 2012-2016 (cat. no. 4431.0.55.002).

2) In this article people who developed a profound or severe disability reported this level of disability in 2016 but not 2006. People who didn’t develop a profound or severe disability didn’t report this level of disability in either 2016 or 2006.

3) The term older people refers to people aged 65 years and over (in contrast to working age people, who are aged 15-64 years of age). In this article, the term refers to people who were aged 65 and over on Census night 2006.

4) A non-dependent child is a natural, adopted, step or foster child (of a couple or single parent usually resident in the household) who is aged 15 years or over. Excludes full-time students aged 15-24, as well as people with an identified partner or child of their own who is usually resident in the household. For more information, see Census of Population and Housing: Census Dictionary 2016 (cat. no. 2901.0).

5) The working age population consists of people 15-64 years of age (in contrast to older people who are aged 65 and over). In this article, the term working age people refers to those who were aged 15-64 on Census night 2006.

6) People in the labour force are either employed, or actively looking for work and available to start work. Note that this data reflects a person’s labour force status on Census night and a range of changes in labour force status may have occurred between Censuses. For more information see Labour Statistics: Concepts, Sources and Methods, Feb 2018 (cat. no. 6102.0.55.001).

7) See Disability Investment Group, The Way Forward: A New Disability Policy Framework For Australia (Canberra: Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, 2009); Productivity Commission, Disability Care and Support, Report no. 54 (Canberra: Productivity Commission, 2011); National People with Disabilities and Carer Council, Shut out: The Experience of People with Disabilities and their Families in Australia (Canberra: Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, 2009).

8) The three-wave ACLD (2006-2011-2016) consists of a representative 5% sample of records from the 2006 Census, linked to corresponding records in the 2011 and 2016 Censuses. Data was then weighted to represent the population that was in scope of the Census for the period 2006 to 2016. For more information, see Information Paper: Australian Census Longitudinal Dataset, Methodology and Quality Assessment, 2006 – 2016 (cat. no. 2080.5).

9) In 2018, the prevalence of profound or severe disability was 18% for people aged 65 and over (compared with 3.2% for people aged 15-64 and 4.5% for people under 15). For more information, see Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings 2018 (cat. no. 4430.0) and Life Tables, States, Territories and Australia (cat. no. 3302.0.55.001).

10) In 2018, 6.0% of females had a profound or severe disability, compared with 5.5% of males. For more information, see Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings 2018 (cat. no. 4430.0).

11) The term community housing refers to rented accommodation owned by Government housing authorities or housing departments, Housing co-operatives, or Community or Church Groups.

12) In 2018, 27% of working age people (living in households) with a profound or severe disability were in the labour force, compared with 82% of people who didn’t have this level of disability. For more information see Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings 2018 (cat. no. 4430.0).

13) Indicates the number of hours worked by the employed person on the week prior to Census night. Excludes people who did not state hours per week.