13% of Americans have a disability—what this means during the job application process

For more than 40 million Americans, job applications may pose a challenging question: Do you have a disability? 

Roughly 13% of the U.S. population identifies as having a disability, according to the Pew Research Center. But this percentage is likely an undercount, Mia Ives-Rublee, disability justice initiative director at the Center for American Progress, tells CNBC Make It. 

"While we continuously talk about how many disabled people are working, how many disabled people there are in the United States, in the world, it's always an undercount because of the fact that there is such a stigma around identifying with the disability," Ives-Rublee says. 

Many job applicants who identify as having a disability grapple with whether or not to self-identify and which option to select, Ives-Rublee says. The voluntary question on some job applications encourages prospective employees to select one of three options when asked about their disability status:

1. Yes, I have a disability, or have had one in the past.
2. No, I do not have a disability and have not had one in the past.
3. I do not want to answer.

When applying for a job, "you want to put your best foot forward," Ives-Rublee says, maybe even a persona "better than your best self." But knowing how to do that can be difficult if you have a disability.

Knowing how to put your best foot forward is challenging for any job candidate, let alone a candidate who identifies as having a disability. For candidates with disabilities who are navigating the job process, Ives-Rublee shares answers to frequently asked questions and information to know when it comes to deciding whether or not to self-identify. 

Employers aren't allowed to ask you about your disability status in a job interview, so why are they allowed to include a voluntary question on a job application? 

Self-identification data — along with data about race, ethnicity, gender identity and veteran status — is collected by federal contractors who are required, by law, to measure diversity data of all applicants as they strive for a more diverse workforce. This is all part of the updated Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the data is stored securely and separately from other personnel and application information to maintain confidentiality. Only those who are responsible for enforcing the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs' regulations are able to view all demographic data, which is stored and aggregated together. 

"Legally, it cannot be flagged on your application," Ives-Rublee says. "Anything around race, disability and gender are all supposed to be anonymous and are taken for federal reporting guidelines."

Voluntarily sharing your disability data allows federal contractors to better understand the makeup of their workforce and work toward the U.S. Department of Labor's aspirational goal that 7% of a sponsor's apprenticeship workforce — or, 7% of federal contractors' employees — consists of qualified individuals with disabilities. 

When choosing whether or not to disclose, there are "a lot of components to think about," Ives-Rublee says.

Disclosing will allow you to ask for the accommodations you legally deserve, but if you choose not to, you might have more difficulty during the hiring process and on the job without those accommodations.

For example, you might be overly tired after the workday or have to work hard to keep up with your co-workers, Ives-Rublee says. 

"You have to assess on your own whether disclosing is beneficial to you," she adds. "If you do not disclose that you have a disability, are you willing to work at a place without the accommodations you want and need and deserve?"

Ives-Rublee generally tells her clients to disclose their disability status for three reasons:

1. They can get the accommodations that they need.
2. They have a case based on the Americans with Disabilities Act should they be discriminated against.
3. They can tell right away if an environment is going to be conducive to those with disabilities.

The choice to self-identify on a job application, or once you are hired into a company, is a deeply personal one, Ives-Rublee acknowledges. The question itself might be uncomfortable for applicants for whom disclosing a disability can be a frustrating act. 

"Having to prove that you have a disability every single time you need a service is such a hassle," Ives-Rublee says, speaking from personal experience. "I need to prove that I have a detriment and I am not a full human being to you every time I want to gain equity in this workplace." 

It is, of course, up to you to decide if or when you are comfortable disclosing your disability status — even if you know the self-identification will be kept confidential during the job application process. 

"A lot of people choose to not disclose that they have a disability. They actually choose 'No, I don't have a disability' versus 'I don't choose to let you know,'" Ives-Rublee says. 

The peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 left many individuals grappling with new disabilities as a result of the virus. The disability demographics of the U.S. have changed, and so have many Americans' thinking about disability and work-life balance. 

"As the economy gets out of the pandemic, we are at a place where workers are deciding what is most important in their lives, including how work interacts with their lives," Ives-Rublee says. "It is a very good thing that we are trying to reorganize our lives to understand the balance within them."

Finding a work-life balance also means thinking about the ways in which your workplace meets your needs, particularly if you have a disability. "It is important during that reflection time to figure out if you want to work for an employer who is not accepting."  

Talking about disability in the workplace and beyond is critical to destigmatizing the notion of disability in today's society, Ives-Rublee says. 

"My whole push is to normalize disability because disability is a normal part of life," she adds. "Once we normalize that, we can start to address it in real ways. In ways that we are not afraid to say 'Yes, I do have a disability.'"

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