Temporary work, underemployment and workplace accommodations: Relationship to well-being for workers with disabilities

This study examines whether employment status and workplace accommodations are associated with perceived well-being among workers with disabilities. Data from the 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey conducted by Statistics Canada were used to test the relationship between employment status, receipt of workplace accommodations and well-being. Findings indicated that fully utilized permanent employees showed greater life satisfaction and less perceived disability-related discrimination than either temporary workers or permanent workers who were underemployed. These findings support the theory that inadequate employment is associated with deleterious effects on employee well-being due to inferior need fulfilment and reduced social status. Workplace accommodations were associated with higher levels of well-being for all workers with disabilities and helped to mitigate the negative effects of temporary status and underemployment. These findings supported the theoretical extension of main effect and buffering models of workplace stress to the prediction of perceived workplace discrimination.