Table of contents
- What the 2023 Wisconsin numbers show
- Who was served
- Gender and race and ethnicity
- Where the overlap is
- Work outcomes and pay
- Youth participation
- How the disability labor market context fits in
What the 2023 Wisconsin numbers show
Vocational rehabilitation statistics are most useful when they show both scale and shape. In the Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report, the 2023 caseload and outcome data reveal a system serving more than one hundred thousand consumers across agencies, with a large youth pipeline, a working-age employment core, and a meaningful level of overlap across programs.
Two figures stand out immediately. Wisconsin had 103,640 consumers served by any agency in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 1,783 consumers were served by all three agencies in common (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That is a strong reminder that vocational rehabilitation is not a single-track process. People can move through multiple services, and some of the most important questions are about transition, coordination, and where programs meet.
At the same time, the adult and youth numbers suggest the system is not only large but segmented by age, employment status, and service pathway. That makes these vocational rehabilitation statistics especially useful for readers who want to understand not just participation, but who is being served and how work outcomes differ by group.
Who was served
A useful way to read the 2023 counts is to start with the basic service population and then work outward. The report shows 103,640 consumers served by any agency in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That total includes a wide age spread. Among consumers served by any agency in 2023, 12,011 were under 16 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 17,527 were ages 16-17 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 14,689 were ages 18-21 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 4,240 were ages 22-24 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 28,977 were ages 25-50 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 26,196 were ages 51-64 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That age pattern shows a broad funnel. There is a major youth presence before age 18, a substantial transition-age cluster from 18 through 24, and then the largest block in the 25-50 range. The 51-64 group is also large, which matters because vocational rehabilitation is often discussed as a youth-to-work pipeline when the data show it is also a midcareer and later-career support system.
Fast facts from the 2023 service population
- Wisconsin had 103,640 consumers served by any agency in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- 12,011 served consumers were under 16 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- 32,216 served consumers were between 16 and 21 inclusive (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- 33,217 served consumers were ages 25-64 inclusive when combining the 25-50 and 51-64 groups (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- 1,783 consumers were served by all three agencies in common (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
The three-agency counts are also important because they help show where systems intersect. Wisconsin’s common consumers served by all three agencies rose to 1,783 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That common group included 85 people under 16 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 497 people ages 16-17 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 1,197 people ages 18-21 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 4 people ages 22-24 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That profile is heavily weighted toward transition-age participants. The counts do not just show that overlap exists; they show that overlap is concentrated where school-to-work and early-work transitions often matter most.
Gender and race and ethnicity
The gender split in the overall served population was 44,679 female consumers, 58,815 male consumers, and 146 consumers whose gender was not reported (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That means the served population was male-heavy in 2023, although the gap is not so large that it overwhelms the rest of the distribution.
Race and ethnicity show a more diverse picture. Among consumers served by any agency in 2023, 1,676 were American Indian or Alaska Native (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 2,064 were Asian (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 20,103 were Black (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 9,320 were Hispanic or Latino (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 82 were Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 66,566 were White (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 3,231 were multi-race (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 598 were not reported for race and ethnicity (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
A compact comparison makes the main structure easier to read.
| Category | Count | Source |
|---|---|---|
| White | 66,566 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Black | 20,103 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Hispanic or Latino | 9,320 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Multi-race | 3,231 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Asian | 2,064 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 1,676 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander | 82 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| Not reported | 598 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
The table shows how concentrated the served population is within the White category, but it also shows meaningful counts across several other groups. That matters for any reading of vocational rehabilitation statistics, because service design, outreach, and outcomes often look different across communities even when the same agency network is serving them.
A quick reading of the demographic mix
- The gender split suggests a larger male served population than female served population (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- The race and ethnicity distribution is concentrated but still clearly multi-group (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- The not-reported counts are relatively small compared with the full population, but they still matter when reading subgroup totals (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
Where the overlap is
The common-consumer data is one of the most informative parts of the report because it shows where systems are meeting the same people.
Wisconsin’s common consumers served by all three agencies totaled 1,783 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Within that group, 619 were female (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report) and 1,164 were male (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). The age mix was especially young: 85 were under 16 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 497 were ages 16-17 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 1,197 were ages 18-21 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 4 were ages 22-24 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
The race and ethnicity breakdown for that overlap group was also detailed. Among the 1,783 common consumers, 51 were American Indian or Alaska Native (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 148 were Asian (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 473 were Black (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 540 were Hispanic or Latino (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 4 were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 3,732 were White (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 243 were multi-race (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
The overlap between DHS-LTC and DWD-DVR is even larger. Wisconsin’s common consumers served by DHS-LTC and DWD-DVR totaled 7,800 in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That group included 107 people under 16 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 559 people ages 16-17 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 2,150 people ages 18-21 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 1,023 people ages 22-24 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 2,960 people ages 25-50 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 1,001 people ages 51-64 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That wider overlap group also had 3,045 female consumers (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report) and 4,755 male consumers (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Compared with the all-three-agency group, the DHS-LTC and DWD-DVR overlap looks broader and more adult-heavy, while still carrying a sizable transition-age share.
Overlap snapshot
| Overlap group | Total | Notable age concentration | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| All three agencies | 1,783 | 1,197 ages 18-21 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
| DHS-LTC and DWD-DVR | 7,800 | 2,150 ages 18-21 | Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report |
Work outcomes and pay
The employment statistics are the part most readers look for first, and the report gives enough detail to move beyond a simple yes-or-no outcome.
DWD-DVR’s 2023 working-age CIE group had 2,996 people (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Their median hours worked per week were 20 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and their median hourly wage was $13.75 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). That pair of values suggests part-time work is common in this group, with wages clustered in the mid-teens rather than at a full-time earnings level.
Age-specific details refine that picture. For DWD-DVR, workers ages 18-21 had a median of 20 hours per week and a $13.00 hourly wage in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Workers ages 22-24 had a median of 20 hours per week and a $12.50 hourly wage (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Workers ages 25-50 had a median of 20 hours per week and a $14.00 hourly wage (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Workers ages 51-64 had a median of 25 hours per week and a $15.00 hourly wage (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That sequence points to gradual movement upward in both hours and wage with age, especially in the older working-age group. It does not describe a dramatic jump, but it does show a pattern worth noticing: older workers in this DWD-DVR data were working more hours and earning a higher median wage than younger workers.
A gender comparison adds another layer. Female DWD-DVR workers had 3,420 people and a median hourly wage of $1,051.66 per quarter in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Male DWD-DVR workers had 6,145 people and a median hourly wage of $1,276.58 per quarter in 2023 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Because the report provides the values in quarterly terms, the key point for readers is the gap in the medians and the larger male count in this DWD-DVR worker group.
Wage and hours at a glance
- DWD-DVR working-age CIE group: 2,996 people (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Median hours per week: 20 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Median hourly wage: $13.75 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Ages 51-64 had the highest median hours, at 25 per week (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Ages 51-64 also had the highest median hourly wage, at $15.00 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
The employment status and wage distributions from the Indicator 14 survey add a second outcome lens. In the Wisconsin Indicator 14 survey, 5,359 of 7,627 exiters responded, or 70% (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Of the 4,355 respondents who were or had been employed, 4,232 worked in a community setting, self-employed, in a family business, or in military service (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Only 24 of those employed respondents were in a sheltered workshop or community rehabilitation program (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That distribution is significant because it shows most employed respondents were in community-connected work settings rather than segregated settings. It also suggests that the survey captured a large share of respondents whose work experience was aligned with mainstream employment or self-employment settings.
The wage bands reinforce that picture. Among employed respondents, 3,632 worked 20 hours or more per week (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 2,415 worked 35 hours or more per week (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 1,217 worked 20 to 34 hours per week (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). On pay, 4,122 employed respondents earned minimum wage or greater (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 138 earned the current minimum wage (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 249 earned between the current minimum wage and $10.00 per hour (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 1,796 earned between $10.00 and $15.00 per hour (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 1,786 earned above $15.00 per hour (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), 153 did not know or preferred not to answer wage questions (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), and 20 earned less than minimum wage (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
That creates a very clear distribution shape. Most employed respondents were at or above minimum wage, a substantial group was above $15 per hour, and only a small number were below minimum wage. For a reader trying to understand vocational rehabilitation statistics, that is the sort of detail that tells a more complete story than a single headline rate.
Youth participation
Youth is one of the clearest entry points into the vocational rehabilitation pipeline, and Wisconsin’s youth application program provides a separate slice of the picture.
Wisconsin’s youth application program had 8,304 youth participants in FY 2022-23 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Of those, 415 self-identified as having an IEP (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report). Average wages were $13.54 per hour for all youth participants (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report), while average wages were $12.71 per hour for students who self-identified with an IEP (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
Those values do not need embellishment to matter. They show a youth pipeline with thousands of participants and a measurable wage difference between all youth participants and the IEP subgroup. Because the same report also shows large counts in the 16-17 and 18-21 service ages, the youth application data fits neatly with the broader age distribution in the overall service population.
Youth data in context
- 8,304 youth participants were served in FY 2022-23 (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- 415 participants self-identified as having an IEP (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Average youth wage: $13.54 per hour (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
- Average IEP student wage: $12.71 per hour (Wisconsin Act 178 2024 Annual Report).
How the disability labor market context fits in
The Wisconsin report is strongest when read alongside the broader labor market context for people with disabilities. The BLS The Economics Daily, April 25 2025 data show that in 2024, the employment-population ratio for people with a disability was 22.7% (BLS The Economics Daily, April 25 2025), the labor force participation rate for people with a disability was 24.5% (BLS The Economics Daily, April 25 2025), and the unemployment rate for people with a disability was 7.5% (BLS The Economics Daily, April 25 2025).
Those three measures frame the state-level vocational rehabilitation numbers in a larger labor market context. They show why employment support systems matter so much: the participation rate is low relative to the general population, the employment-population ratio is limited, and the unemployment rate remains elevated.
For that reason, vocational rehabilitation statistics are not just agency performance numbers. They are a way to track how many people are entering services, how many are overlapping across agencies, what ages are most represented, and what kinds of employment outcomes are showing up in the data. The 2023 Wisconsin figures provide all of that in one place.