Relationships of Barriers to Employment with Work Life Expectancy among Participants with Spinal Cord Injury

Background Vocational rehabilitation counselors and policymakers need to better understand barriers to employment, not just related to the initial transition to employment, but to the length and quality of employment throughout the entire work lifecycle. Objective Our purpose was to identify the relationships of four types of barriers to employment with work life expectancy (WLE) among participants with spinal cord injury (SCI). Method Using self-report data, we applied a survival model to identify hazard of departure from the labor force, as a function of demographic, SCI, and socioeconomic characteristics, veteran status, and the four types of barriers to employment. Results Hazard of loss of employment and reduced WLE were associated with each of four types of barriers to employment, when considering one factor at a time. The four sets of barriers were: health considerations, poor job fit, low motivation/confidence, and lack of resources. When considering all factors simultaneously, all remained significant, except lack of resources. The findings identified relative importance of each type of barrier in relation to hazard of job loss and WLE. Conclusion Vocational rehabilitation counselors may utilize the findings to explore barriers to employment and diminished WLE among those with SCI.