As the job market continues to improve, the number of people with disabilities who are employed is also edging up.

The unemployment rate for those with disabilities fell to 11.2 percent in February as more individuals within this population found work, the U.S. Department of Labor said Friday. That’s down from 11.9 percent the prior month.

The uptick in disability employment comes as the economy as a whole added 295,000 jobs, bringing the unemployment rate for the general population down to 5.5 percent, according to the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Federal officials began tracking employment among people with disabilities in October 2008. There is not yet enough data compiled to establish seasonal trends among this population, so statistics for this group are not seasonally adjusted.

Data on people with disabilities covers those over the age of 16 who do not live in institutions. The first employment report specific to this population was made available in February 2009. Now, reports are released monthly.

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