Access to employment is a standout among the most troublesome issues confronted by disabled people in Cyprus, as more than 10,000 who have appropriate qualifications remain unemployed. Worldwide estimations indicate that disabled people are either unemployed or underemployed at a much higher rate when compared to individuals with no disability. This study aimed at examining the association of the unemployment and underemployment status of disabled people with their demographic characteristics as it appears in other countries with similar cultural and legal environments. This correlational and regression study encompassed collecting primary data using 117 online questionnaire responses gathered from the 6,000 registered members with physical disabilities in related organizations in Cyprus. The study used cross-sectional survey utilizing judgment (purposive) sampling to simultaneously measure demographic variables and type of disability, toward the unemployment and/or underemployment status of disabled individuals in Cyprus, to identify possible relationships between them hence to identify if demographic variables and type of disability significantly relate to unemployment and underemployment. Results indicate that people with certain disability types have higher probabilities of being employed than others with different types of disability. People with paraplegia, quadriplegia, dystrophy, and neurological disabilities hold lower employment rates than other types of disability. People with visual disability and people with absent limb/reduced limb function rank high in both unemployment and employment rates at an equal rate. There is a significant association between the type of disability and the employment status of disabled people. The study findings relating to the employment status of disabled people in Cyprus differ to the literature findings, as it is unexpectedly much lower to what it is reported in the literature.
