Fall in positive attitudes towards people with disabilities in the workplace: MSF report

SINGAPORE: Positive attitudes towards persons with disabilities (PWDs) in Singapore’s workforce saw a decline last year compared to 2019, the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) said in a report released on Monday (Dec 2). 
Only 50.6 per cent of those surveyed had positive attitudes towards PWDs in the workplace in 2023, a drop from 59.6 per cent in 2019. Simultaneously, those who felt negatively about them in the workplace rose from 9 per cent to almost 14 per cent. 
These findings were released in the National Council of Social Services’ (NCSS) Public Attitudes Toward Persons with Disabilities Study (PAS). 
About 2,000 Singapore residents without disabilities were surveyed on their perceptions of PWDs in areas such as education, employment and other community spaces and public areas. 
The same trend can be seen in educational institutions and community shared spaces where there was a dip in positive impressions towards them. 
In schools and other learning spaces, the figure fell from 83.2 per cent in 2019 to 81.1 per cent in 2023, while good sentiments towards PWDs in community and shared spaces dipped from 81 per cent to 78.2 per cent during the same period, data from the study showed. 
As a whole, positive attitudes from the public fell in 2023 compared to 2019. 
The report showed that members of the public who felt negatively towards them rose from 1.8 per cent to 2.5 per cent, while those who felt either “extremely positive” or “moderately positive” dropped from 76.8 per cent to 68.9 per cent. 
Although the study did not identify specific reasons, it found that public attitudes were associated with the frequency of contact.
Respondents who had contact with PWDs at least twice in the past year reported more positive attitudes compared to those did not, MSF said. 
There was a 7.1 per cent climb in those who felt “neutral” during the same period. 
However, PWDs who felt included and not discriminated against by those around them inched up from 51.7 per cent in 2015, to 53.5 per cent in 2023. 
The study also looked at overall public attitudes according to the disability type – physical, intellectual, sensory and autism.  
People with autism saw the largest decrease in positive perception towards them, from 69.9 per cent in 2019 to 56.2 per cent in 2023.
Positive sentiments towards people with intellectual and sensory disabilities also declined by 11.1 per cent and 8.9 per cent respectively. 
People who felt negatively about those with autism shot up to 9 per cent last year from 3.8 per cent. Negative sentiments towards those with intellectual and sensory disabilities also rose 2.4 per cent and 1.4 per cent. 
Positive perceptions towards those with physical disabilities saw a marginal fall of less than 1 per cent. 
“Singapore has made progress over the years to become more disability inclusive. We hope for more persons with disabilities to experience better quality of life and greater opportunities to participate meaningfully in society,” Senior Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Social and Family Development, Eric Chua said. 
“However, we must continue to raise public awareness, especially less visible disabilities, such as intellectual disability and autism, and foster inclusive workplaces”, Mr Chua added.
Caregivers reported a drop in their quality of life score, from 64.7 out of 100 in 2022 to 62.1 this year, NCSS’ Disability and Inclusion Panel Study (DIPS) cited in the MSF report showed. 
A further breakdown showed that their quality of life (QOL) dropped by at least 2.5 points across physical, social relationships and the psychological domain from 2022 to 2024, while falling 1.4 points in the environment domain. 
“The decrease in QOL scores across the four domains from 2022 to 2024 was significantly larger among caregivers of persons with disabilities with low family resilience, high caregiving burden, and low perceived social support, compared to those with moderate to high family resilience, low caregiving burden, and high perceived social support,” the study explained. 
It also revealed that one in four caregivers were aged 65 and above, and a majority – 67.9 per cent – were females. More than 50 per cent of caregivers were parents, followed by spouses (19.5 per cent), and children (11.9 per cent). 
Although more needs to be done to support caregivers and PWDs in the workforce, there have been improvements in salary levels, MSF’s report revealed, pulling data from the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) Comprehensive Labour Force Survey. 
PWDs in the workforce are now receiving higher salaries as more progress to tertiary education and clinch Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians (PMETs) roles. 
In 2022/2023, they drew a median income of S$4,242 (US$3,153), while the resident workforce earned S$5,421. This is an increase from $2,630 and $4,597 respectively in 2018/2019. 
The average employment rate of Singapore residents with disabilities aged 15 to 64 rose to 32.7 per cent in 2022/2023 compared to 28.2 per cent in 2018/2019.
This brings Singapore closer to its target of having 40 per cent of PWDs employed by 2030, one of the key goals in the Enabling Masterplan 2030.
The proportion aged 15 to 64 in full-time employment increased from 74.5 per cent in 2018/2019, to 79.7 per cent in 2022/2023, while those in part-time employment dipped from 25.5 per cent in 2018/2019 to 20.3 per cent in 2022/2023.
Ramping up accessible physical infrastructure in public spaces is also part of plans to drive Singapore’s inclusivity efforts. 
A large share of PWDs were satisfied with public as well as point-to-point transport. 
In 2023, 83.4 per cent used some form of public transport, with 74.2 per cent feeling satisfied with Singapore’s public transport system. 
About 63 per cent used some form of point-to-point transport, and slightly over 60 per cent of them reported feeling satisfied.
There was also a marginal improvement in accessibility to public buildings and other spaces. 
“Disability inclusion is a collective effort – employers, families, and communities all play a critical role in building a Singapore where everyone feels valued and supported,” Mr Chua said.