Hunga whaikaha Disability

Of those completing the Public Service Census 2025, 3.9% identified as a disabled person, 19.4% reported having a mental health condition and 13.6% reported having a neurodivergent condition. The approach to measuring disability and mental health differed from 2021, and this was the first time a question on neurodivergent conditions was asked. See section on Measuring disability, mental health and neurodivergence below for more information on this measurement approach.

Measuring disability, mental health and neurodivergence

The Public Service Census 2025 found that disabled public servants were underrepresented at management-level:  

• 2.0% of senior managers (tiers 1 to 3) identified as disabled, compared to 2.5% of lower-level managers and 4.1% of non-managerial staff. 
• 8.0% of senior managers said they had a mental health condition, compared to 13.5% of lower-level managers and 20.6% of non-managerial staff. 

• 5.3% of senior managers said they had a neurodivergent condition, compared with 9.1% of lower-level managers and 14.4% of non-managerial staff. 

Older public servants were less likely to say they had a mental health condition (12.6% of public servants aged 50+) or a neurodivergent condition (8.1%) than younger public servants (24.2% and 17.3% respectively). This may explain some of the difference in managerial representation for these groups, as managers tend to be older. However, this does not help explain the difference in managerial representation for those who identified as disabled, as older public servants were more likely to say they identified as disabled (4.8% of public servants aged 50+ compared to 3.4% of those aged under 50). 

In terms of intersectionality: 

• Public servants who identified as part of the rainbow communities in the Public Service Census were around 3 to 4 times more likely to also identify as being disabled or to have a mental health or neurodivergent condition compared to non-rainbow staff. Stats NZ’s 2023 Household Disability Survey also found that disabled people were more likely to be rainbow.2023 Household Disability Survey – Stats.govt.nz

• Public servants who identified as disabled were more likely to be European. They were less than half as likely to be of Asian, or Middle eastern, Latin American or African (MELAA), ethnicities. Pacific staff were also notably less likely to report being disabled. Similar patterns were visible across those with mental health and neurodivergent conditions (although similar proportions of MELAA staff reported neurodivergent conditions to other public servants). 

Disability(CSV, 21 KB)

Satisfaction with accommodations(CSV, 2 KB)

Number asked about accommodations(CSV, 3 KB)

The 2025 Public Service Census asked new questions on workplace supports or accommodations. These questions were asked of 4.6% of public servants: the 3.9% of public servants who identified as disabled, and a further 0.7% of public servants who said they had mental health or neurodivergent conditions but did not answer the disability question. 

Just over half of those public servants who were asked said they used or required workplace supports or accommodations for their health condition, disability or impairment (2.4% of all public servants). 

Almost all (89%) the public servants who said they used or required workplace supports or accommodations had talked to their employer about their workplace needs (2.1% of all public servants). 

These public servants were also asked about their satisfaction with how their organisation has responded to their needs or supports them to carry out work activities: 

• The majority (55%) said they were satisfied with how their organisation has responded to their needs or supports them to carry out work activities; 22% said they were dissatisfied.  

• A higher proportion of those who had talked to their employer said they were satisfied (59%) than those who hadn’t talked (26%).  

• Those who identified as disabled had higher satisfaction (57%), than those who had mental health conditions (49%) or neurodivergent conditions (47%). 

The 2025 Public Service Census results indicated that the experience of working in the Public Service could vary for those identifying as disabled or those that had mental health or neurodivergent conditions.  

For example: 

• Overall, 12.1% of staff reported being bullied or harassed, but this rose to 22.4% for those identifying as disabled, 18.7% for those with mental health conditions and also 18.7% for those with neurodivergent conditions. 

• Overall, 14.4% of all staff felt they had been discriminated against; this was 32.5% for public servants who identify as a disabled person. When disabled public servants were asked what grounds they felt discriminated on, 21.7% said they were treated unfairly due to their disability, 8.2% due to their age, 7.8% due to their gender, 5.8% due to their ethnicity and 3.4% due to their employment status. These add to more than 32.5% as people could select multiple grounds for discrimination. Public servants with mental health or neurodivergent conditions also reported higher rates of discrimination (19.9% and 23.2% respectively). 

• Public servants who identified as disabled were less likely to feel their workplace was respectful. For example, 66% felt that ‘the agency they work for supports and actively promotes a workplace where people are respectful towards one another’, compared to 73% for all public servants. The equivalent figures for those with mental health and neurodivergent conditions was both 67%. 

• 55% of all staff were satisfied with their work-life balance compared to 48% of staff who identified as disabled, 46% for staff with mental health condition and 45% for staff with a neurodivergent condition. This mirrored Stats NZ 2023 General Social Survey data which found that disabled people in the wider labour market had lower work-life balance satisfaction than non-disabled people. 

• Job satisfaction (62% overall) was lower for public servants who identified as disabled (57%) or reported having a mental health condition (52%), or neurodivergent condition (53%). This mirrored Stats NZ’s 2023 General Social Survey data which found that disabled people in the wider labour market had lower job satisfaction than non-disabled people. 

• 63% of all staff were satisfied with their access to learning and development needed to do their job well, compared to 58% of staff who identified as disabled, 59% for both staff with mental health and neurodivergent conditions. 

• Staff who identified as disabled, or reported having a mental health or neurodivergent conditions were paid less on average than their non-disabled colleagues.  

• See the section on pay gaps for more information. 

Measuring disability, mental health and neurodivergence

In the Public Service Census 2025, disability was measured by asking public servants whether they identified as a disabled person, and 3.9% agreed. The approach to measuring disability differed from 2021, when the Washington Group Short Set of Questions was used. That approach gave a proportion of 5.5% of public servants reporting a functional limitation, disability, health condition or impairment. These figures are not comparable due to the change in approach, but both enabled the exploration of survey topics from a disability perspective and the comparison of the experiences of disabled and non-disabled employees. 

Both approaches provide a way of capturing disability without using an extended set of questions, which is impractical in a broadly focused survey such as the Public Service Census, but they don’t capture the full prevalence of disability in the Public Service workforce. The 2023 Household Disability Survey from Stats NZ was designed to measure prevalence, as it used an extended set of questions. We commissioned a special data cut from this survey for the Public Service workforce.  

Overall, the 2023 Household Disability Survey found that 1 in 6 New Zealanders (or 17%) are disabled. When looking at all people with a paid job, the rate was lower at 11%.  The estimate for the Public Service workforce was 12%. This difference is not statistically significant, as the estimate for the Public Service workforce has a high relative sampling error. 

As well as the question on disability, we included a question on mental health (‘Do you consider yourself to have, and/or are you currently diagnosed as having a mental health condition?), with 19.4% of public servants agreeing.  This question differed from the 2021 question (‘Do you experience any mental health conditions that have lasted for six months or more?’) when 17.9% agreed. The difference in these figures may be due to the change in question wording. 

For the first time in the Public Service Census 2025, a question was included on neurodivergent conditions (‘Do you consider yourself to be neurodivergent, and/or have you been diagnosed with a neurodivergent condition?’), with 13.6% of public servants agreeing. 

Respondents may have understood the mental health and neurodivergent questions in different ways, in terms of severity and persistence. Of public servants who said they had a mental health condition in 2025, 8.6% also identified as disabled (compared to 3.9% of all public servants). Of those who said they had a neurodivergent condition, 12.5% also identified as disabled. 

A more in-depth look at disabled public servants using 2021 Public Service Census is available in the Disability Deep Dive.

Disability Deep Dive