Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/dpn/
and
The Burton Blatt Institute
Syracuse University
http://bbi.syr.edu
One–Stop Toolkit
Resources of the Week Technical Assistance Project E–Mail listserv
13 October 2006
Good morning everyone,
Happy National Disability Employment Awareness Month! Thank you for all your efforts and activities to promote the abilities and needs of job seekers with disabilities and to help build the capacity of the workforce development system to provide effective and meaningful participation to them!!
Below please find the web site and publication of the week, as well as other resources that we hope will be useful as you work on systems change activities to help improve employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
To subscribe and / or view past resources of the week archives, access: www.onestoptoolkit.org and click on the link to "Resources of the Week" on the right hand side of the home page.
To view an indexed list of the resources of the week by subject matter, visit the L.P.H.D.C. web site at http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/lhpdc/resources/wig/default.asp. It currently includes 20 categories, covering over 300 annotated references. Each category opens to a new window with each Resource of the Week which covered material in that area.
Have a good day and weekend!
Laura Farah
Program Associate
Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
P: 617–489–0086
F: 617–489–1374
[ E–mail Lgleneck@mail.law.uiowa.edu ]
[ E–mail LFarah8@aol.com ]
[ http://www.onestoptoolkit.org ]
[The full announcement is located under the section heading "Publications of Interest."
]
This guide includes practical ideas, developed by Job Accommodation Network (JAN) consultants, to help employees understand the A.D.A. and request and negotiate reasonable accommodations in the workplace. It includes a summary of some of the most frequent issues that employees have regarding accommodations and the A.D.A. and JAN’s practical ideas for resolving them. Including A.D.A. Basics, the guide has two main sections that are each broken down into common questions and concerns of job seekers with disabilities.
This is valuable information and guidance that D.P.Ns can use and also share with One-Stop staff who work with job seekers with disabilities. It would also be great to share with community disability partners who work with job seekers with disabilities.
[The following is excerpted from the Introduction to the Plan.]
Almost a century ago, Congress established the Department of Labor (D.O.L.) with a mission to foster, promote, and develop the welfare of the wage earners of the United States, to improve their working conditions, and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment. Today, that mission continues in a vastly different, global context. While the interests of wage earners remain a core value for the Department, its policies and programs have evolved to address the emerging needs of workers and employers in a competitive 21st Century economy. The Department of Labor fulfills its leadership role in this dynamic environment through the careful management of four strategic goals outlined in this Strategic Plan.
The Government Performance and Results Act (G.P.R.A.) of 1993 requires the development of a six-year, Departmental strategic plan that is to be updated every three years. The Department’s previous plan was issued in September 2003 and covered Fiscal Years 2003 – 2008. This updated Strategic Plan covers Fiscal Years 2006 – 2011 and represents a collaborative effort to carry out the vision for the Department over the next several years. The Plan provides a framework for D.O.L’s budgeting and planning activities and serves as a road map for D.O.L. agencies to measure performance, refine strategies, and define priorities. With these clearly articulated goals and a transparent course of action, the Department of Labor is positioned to achieve and demonstrate real results for the American public.
Workforce professionals assist businesses, workers, and job seekers to help build a better workforce system. The tools and resources on this section of the U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration’s (D.O.L.E.T.A.) website assist workforce professionals in the development of America's workforce.
The website also includes information on “what’s new” in workforce investment, topics of interest and state and local activities.
The Employer Assistance & Recruiting Network (EARN) is a free service that connects employers looking for quality employees with skilled job candidates. In addition, it assists employers in understanding the practical business reasons, as well as the practices that facilitate the recruitment and hiring of people with disabilities. This web site serves as a one-stop source for disability employment information including: a. recruiting services; b. tools and resources, c. employer success stories, and d. business case for hiring people with disabilities.
To learn more about EARN's services and resources, access the FAQ page at: http://www.earnworks.com/faqs.htm. It includes questions and answers about:
Walgreens is building a series of distribution centers that will open many jobs to people with disabilities. Every job is open to people with disabilities. This includes management jobs. The first of these new centers will open in Anderson, South Carolina in 2006 - 2007. Local disability agencies are now offering pre-hire training.
The Frequently Asked Questions link (http://walgreensoutreach.com/faq/index.html) includes answers to questions about the types of job opportunities, how to apply, the workplace environment, wages and benefits, and the community in which the first distribution center will open in South Carolina.
JAN consultants have been providing information to employers about the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) since 1992 when the A.D.A. went into effect. Over the years, JAN consultants have developed practical ideas to help employers provide job accommodations and comply with the A.D.A. The Employers' Practical Guide to Reasonable Accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act is a summary of some of the most frequent issues that employers have regarding accommodations and A.D.A. compliance and JAN's practical ideas for resolving them. As new information is available or new issues develop, the Guide will be updated to reflect the changes.
JAN consultants have been providing job accommodation information since 1983 when JAN was founded. In addition, JAN consultants have been providing information about the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) since 1992 when the A.D.A. went into effect. Over the years, JAN consultants have developed practical ideas to help employees understand the A.D.A. and request and negotiate reasonable accommodations in the workplace. The Employees' Practical Guide to Requesting and Negotiating Reasonable Accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act is a summary of some of the most frequent issues that employees have regarding accommodations and the A.D.A. and JAN's practical ideas for resolving them. As new information is available or new issues develop, the Guide will be updated to reflect the changes.
JAN has two main focuses, identifying job accommodations and providing technical assistance on the employment provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.). While not a job placement service, JAN receives questions from people with disabilities looking for work. To address the needs of JAN callers looking for employment, this Employment Guide was developed and provides a four-step process with information, tools, and resources that can be used to find the right job.
[The following is excerpted from the Introduction to the report.]
In the October 2003 report, The Social Security Definition of Disability (www.ssab.gov/documents/SocialSecurityDefinitionOfDisability.pdf) [ Get free Adobe Reader ], the Social Security Advisory Board observed that, “The original Social Security disability programs were…designed to serve those who had no realistic expectation of a return to the workforce because of a combination of severity of disability and attainment of near-retirement age.” At that time we also raised the question of whether or not the Social Security definition of disability facilitates an appropriate approach to supporting and enabling persons with disabilities.
During the past 3 years a major activity of the Board has been a review of our Nation’s approach to disability. We have been aided in this task by the many thoughtful parties who have generously shared their perspectives and expertise with us. We have learned a great deal about the strengths and weaknesses of the disability system. The result has been to confirm our belief that a definition based on inability to work collides with the goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which proclaimed that “the Nation’s proper goals regarding individuals with disabilities are to assure equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for such individuals.”
The Board believes we must find a way to revise the Social Security definition of disability in a way that does not undermine the protections afforded by the last resort programs administered by the Social Security Administration but does support an integrated approach that provides and emphasizes an alternate path — one directed to self-support, independence, and contribution that can help those who might, by taking that path, avoid, delay, or minimize their need for dependence on the programs of last resort. We should, in fact, question the idea that there is such a thing as a single “definition of disability.”
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...the Nation’s proper goals regarding individuals with disabilities are to assure equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self sufficiency for such individuals...Americans with Disabilities Act
The Board believes that increasing expectations about the ability to work is consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) and the desires of most persons with disabilities and their families. The challenge is how to implement a strategy that meets the aspirations of the A.D.A., fulfills the needs of persons with disabilities, maintains the protections provided by the Social Security disability programs, and is fiscally responsible and sustainable.