Press Release IG Metall survey: Employees with disabilities are under increasing pressure

Frankfurt am Main – People with disabilities face increasingly bleak prospects in the workplace. Uncertainty is growing in 83 percent of companies, and in one in four, it is rising significantly. This is shown by an IG Metall survey of approximately 1,000 representatives for employees with severe disabilities (SBV) conducted on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3). Only 5 percent report greater job security.

The main causes of these diminished prospects are job cuts and restructuring within companies (84 percent). 44 percent of the SBVs report that jobs held by employees with disabilities are being specifically eliminated. Nearly a quarter (23 percent) criticize a lack of integration into the workplace. The greatest challenges for employees with disabilities are physical demands (68 percent), followed by poor work organization (40 percent)—such as time pressure, unclear tasks, or monotonous work.

“Employees with disabilities are among the first victims of the escalating crisis in workplaces,” says IG Metall Social Affairs Director Hans-Jürgen Urban. “People with severe disabilities need solidarity and security in the workplace, especially now.”

Employment of People with Disabilities: One in Two Companies Avoids the Legal Quota

Urban calls for a “barrier-free labor market for all” and tangible sanctions for companies that do not employ enough people with severe disabilities. “It is clearly not enough for companies to be able to buy their way out of this obligation cheaply by paying a compensation levy. Those who disregard statutory rights to participation must face consequences.”

According to the IG Metall survey, only one in two companies (47 percent) in its organizational area meets the legal obligation to employ people with severe disabilities. Only 44 percent of medium-sized companies with 100 to 1,000 employees comply with the mandated quota of at least 5 percent. Small companies (up to 100 employees) and large companies (over 1,000 employees) stand at 56 percent.

The online survey was conducted among 994 companies with a representative for people with severe disabilities. The survey period was November 10–23, 2025.