EMPLOYMENT
This page provides a variety of information and resources on the topic of employment for people with disabilities, including:
Job Openings:
- AAPD Jobs Board
- Community Resource Council Jobs Bank
- NCIL Jobs & Internships Listings
- Social Security Administration - Various job openings w/ possible preference for workers w/ disabilities
- Independent Living Advocate, Topeka Independent Living Resource Center (TILRC)
News
People with disabilities find few jobs, By Diane Stafford, Kansas City Star, June 12, 2013
US Labor Department moves to protect workers with disabilities in crackdown on Rhode Island employer, From the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), June 13, 2013
How high-tech jobs could solve the autism unemployment crisis, By Katie Drummond, The Verge, June 06, 2013
NGA Chair Hosts Pittsburgh Institute on Employing People with Disabilities, From the National Governors Association, May 09, 2013
Employer Wellness Programs Need Guidance to Avoid Discrimination, From the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), May 08, 2013
Where to Find Telecommuting Jobs,By Guest Blogger Megan Totka, Chief Editor, ChamberofCommerce.com, May 01, 2013
Career Connection Series: Tips on Completing an Application for Employment, By Guest Blogger Paula Reuben Vieillet, President and Founder of Employment Options, Inc., Disability Blog, April 10, 2013
Workers with a Disability Less Likely to be Employed, More Likely to Hold Jobs with Lower Earnings, Census Bureau Reports, From the United States Census Bureau, March 14, 2013
Positive Outlooks for Workers with Disabilities, By Guest Blogger Megan Totka, Editorial Director, ChamberofCommerce.com, Disability Blog, February 21, 2013
What Questions Are Illegal for Employers to Ask During Job Interviews, By Guest Blogger Paula Reuben Vieillet, President of Employment Options Inc., Disability Blog, February 04, 2013
What Can YOU Do? National Campaign Challenges Public to Improve Disability Employment Landscape, From the Campaign for Disability Employment (CDE), January 2013
Alphapoint helps when your sight is going but you want to keep working, By Diane Stafford, The Kansas City Star, January 07, 2013
Working at Home Can Change Your Life, By Guest Blogger Lori Adler, Ticket to Work Participant & Public Relations Specialist for Employment Options, Inc., Disability Blog, October 24, 2012
NDEAM 2012: My Story, By Guest Blogger Daman Wandke, MBA student, web accessibility specialist for the Federal Housing Finance Agency and disability advocate, Disability Blog, October 22, 2012
Disability Status Report Update on the Cornell Website, From Disability Statistics, October 18, 2012
National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM): "Today, How Can I Help?", By Guest Blogger Susan Fleming, PhD, RN, Perinatal CNS, Assistant Professor, Washington State University College of Nursing, Spokane, Disability Blog, October 10, 2012
NDEAM 2012: The Value of Work, By Kathleen Martinez, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Disability Employment Policy (Reposted from DOL’s (Work in Progress) Blog), Disability Blog, October 02, 2012
Introducing the New Ticket to Work Website!, By Guest Blogger Bob Williams, Associate Commissioner for the Social Security Administration’s Office of Employment Support Programs, Disability Blog, September 20, 2012
Workers with Disabilities Do NOT Need Our Charity: ‘Give’ Something that Benefits All of Us – Opportunity, By Jan Long, Founder & CEO of Mitchell Marketing Group, dba The Mr. Canary® Company, Disability Blog, July 18, 2012
HELP Committee Releases Report, Recommendations on Disability Employment, From the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), July 16, 2012
Programs for disabled job seekers are fragmented, repetitive, GAO finds, By Charles S. Clark, Government Executive, July 05, 2012
U.S. Justice Department threatens to sue Oregon over disabled worker programs, By Michelle Cole, The Oregonian, July 02, 2012
Feds: Sheltered Workshops May Violate Disabilities Act, By Michelle Diament, Disability Scoop, May 01, 2012
Claims Of Workplace Disability Discrimination At All-Time High, By Shaun Heasley, Disability Scoop, January 24, 2012
AAPD Praises President Obama and U.S. Labor Department for Proposed Regulations to Promote Opportunity for Job Seekers with Disabilities, From the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), December 8, 2011
Advocacy Organizations and Informational Resources
The goal of ABILITYjobs/ABILITYresume and JobAccess is to enable people with disabilities to enhance their professional lives by providing a dedicated system for finding employment. By posting job opportunities, employers not only exhibit an open door policy but also demonstrate their responsiveness to affirmative action by genuinely recruiting qualified persons with disabilities.
The ADA National Network is a national network of 10 regional Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTAC) that provide the most complete and experienced services for up-to-date information, referrals, resources, and training on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to businesses, employers, government entities, and individuals with disabilities.
Disability.gov is the federal government's one-stop Web site for information of interest to people with disabilities, their families, employers, service providers and many others. This section of Disability.gov covers a variety of topics related to employment of people with disabilities: advice for individuals with disabilities seeking work; help for employers looking for hard-working and dedicated employees; information on employment rights, laws and regulations; resources for employment programs and job accommodations for people with disabilities.
Disability Nondiscrimination Law Advisor — This Advisor is designed to help employers determine which federal disability nondiscrimination laws apply to their business or organization. The Advisor also helps recipients of federal financial assistance understand their responsibilities under these laws.
Employment1st.org - Across Kansas, there are many people trapped by attitudes toward their physical and mental disabilities, attitudes that deem them unemployable. The Employment1st.org website shows how wrong those attitudes are. In a series of stories, you will find information of interest to employers, to families and supporters, and to people with disabilities about how employment success is achieved.
The Employer Assistance & Resource Network (EARN) provides federal and private employers with free consulting services and resources to support the recruitment, hiring, and retention of people with disabilities. EARN connects employers with national networks of available job seekers through relationships with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation (CSAVR), and the Commission on the Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). In addition to providing these linkages, EARN also provides high quality up-to-date online information and technical assistance to promote the inclusion of employees with disabilities in the workplace.
Envision is a private, not-for-profit agency uniquely combining employment opportunities with rehabilitation services and public education. Our Mission To enhance the personal independence of individuals whose blindness or low vision, often accompanied by other disabilities, impacts their opportunities for employment, success, and integration into community life.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces federal civil rights laws dealing with employment and provides oversight and coordination of all federal equal employment opportunity regulations, practices, and policies.
The Job Accommodation Network or JAN, is a free consulting service designed to increase the employability of people with disabilities by providing individualized worksite accommodations solutions, providing technical assistance regarding the ADA and other disability related legislation, and educating callers about self-employment options.
JAN's Searchable Online Accommodation Resource (SOAR) system is designed to let users explore various accommodation options for people with disabilities in work and educational settings. These accommodation ideas are not all inclusive. If you do not find answers to your questions, please contact JAN directly. The staff of experienced consultants is happy to discuss specific accommodation needs in a confidential manner.
The Department of Veterans Affairs Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Program's Website is dedicated to providing information about veteran benefits administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service to veterans, employers, and the general public.
The Kansas Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program is designed to assess, plan, develop and provide VR services to eligible individuals with disabilities, consistent with their strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, capabilities, interests and informed choice. By providing services in this way, the VR program enables individuals with disabilities to prepare for and engage in gainful employment.
Ticket to Work is a voluntary program offered by the Social Security Administration that helps people with disabilities who want to work by providing them with free support services. While you explore your work options or go back to school, the Ticket Program and special rules, called Work Incentives, help you stay in control of your healthcare and cash benefits. You can select any approved service provider, called an Employment Network (EN), to help you. Once you choose an EN, together you develop an individualized plan that spells out how the EN will help you meet your employment goals. Or you can work with the local State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agency.
Kansas Working Healthy Program - Many people with disabilities want to work but worry that doing so could jeopardize their vital health and long term care coverage. Working Healthy offers Kansans with disabilities who are working or interested in working the opportunity to get or keep Medicaid coverage while on the job.
Think College! College Options for People with Intellectual Disabilities - Doors to colleges are opening for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities in many different ways all over the country. This website is designed to share what is currently going on, provide resources and strategies, let you know about training events, and give you ways to talk to others. The information is for transition aged students as well as adults attending or planning for college. It provides resources and tools for students, families, and professionals.
Publications
A Guide for People with Disabilities Seeking Employment. A 2-page pamphlet for people with disabilities providing a general explanation of the employment provisions of the ADA and how to file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (Spanish edition available from the ADA Information Line). Employment (HTML) | Employment (PDF)
Employers’ Practical Guide to Reasonable Accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. This publication from the U.S. Department of Labor's Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is a summary of some of the most frequent issues that employers have regarding accommodations and ADA compliance and JAN’s practical ideas for resolving them.
Return-to-Work Toolkit for Employees & Employers, This new toolkit, from the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), helps employers and employees understand the return-to-work process. It provides resources to help get employees who experience an illness or injury back on the job quickly and smoothly. The employee toolkit includes information about job accommodations, preparing for a job interview, resume writing, self-employment and employment-related laws. The employer toolkit has information about strategies such as offering the opportunity to work part-time, telecommuting, modifying work duties or schedules, as well as resources that can help employers retain the talents of older workers.
Segregated & Exploited: The Failure of the Disability Service System to Provide Quality Work, January 2011 - This National Disability Rights Network (NDRN) report identifies the barriers to employment that people with disabilities face and dispels myths about their capability to be fully employed, equally compensated, and an integral member of American workplaces and communities. It illustrates a systemic failure to provide hope and opportunity to young people with disabilities who want to transition into traditional work but instead wind up trapped in a sheltered workshop with little chance for something different.
Unfinished Business: Making Employment of People with Disabilities a National Priority, U.S. Senate HELP Committee, July 2012 - This report describes the dismal disability employment situation, points to some recent developments that create an historic opportunity to bring more workers with disabilities into the labor force, and calls on the leadership in Congress and the Administration, in the business community, and in society at large to elevate this issue to a national priority.