Employability skills and quality of life among employees with mild and moderate intellectual disability who attend occupation centers in Catalonia (Spain)

Background: The study explores the relationship between quality of life (QoL) and employability skills in a non-random sample of 100 employees of occupational centres (OCs) in Barcelona (Spain). The influence of gender, age and level of intellectual disability (ID) is also explored. Method: A quantitative approach was adopted to collect and examine data, gathered through two different instruments: the GENCAT SCALE (Verdugo et al., 2008) (and the Employability Skills Scale (Jariot, Laborda and González, 2020). Results: A correlation between QoL and employability skills has been found. A relationship between age and employability skills was also found, in which younger individuals reported better in employability skills. Age was also found to have an effect on some QoL domains. The ID level turned out to be a significant factor in the development of employability skills, as well as in some QoL domains. The crucial role of job placement in personal development is underlined, as well as the need for more inclusive procedures in occupancy services.