Self-Employment
Self-employment has long been an employment alternative for individuals seeking a new or better career. Today, many jobseekers with disabilities are turning to the flexibility of self-employment to meet both their career aspirations and financial goals. Self-employed persons have increased latitude in determining the hours they work, the type of work they do, and how much money they make.
ODEP has positioned itself as a leader in the growing movement to encourage and support entrepreneurship among individuals with disabilities. The agency has sought to create and cultivate and array of Federal, state, and local partnerships to further this effort and will continue to ecnourage the allocation of funding and resources to support inidividuals starting their own businesses.
ODEP's Self-Employment Resources
In October 2006, ODEP initiated self-employment initiatives by funding one national technical assistance center and three cooperative agreements. The goal of these initiatives is to promote a systems-change approach to increase self-employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
Self-Employment Resources for People with Disabilities
This site offers several self-employment materials and resources developed by ODEP's funded initiative with the National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adult.The Small Business and Self-Employment Service (SBSES), an ODEP-supported service provides business ownership opportunities for people with disabilities. SBSES is located at the Job Accommodation Network.
Encouraging Future Innovation: Youth Entrepreneurship Education
An ODEP fact sheet on benefits, advantages, how to get started, and resources on entrepreneurship education, including information for youth with disabilities in entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education.
ODEP's Self-Employment Media and Press Releases
ODEP Releases Video on Employment Solutions for Small Business: Watch this roundtable discussion and learn more about how these employers saved time and money by including employees with disabilities in their companies.
ODEP's Collaborative Self-Employment Policy Initiatives
Strategic Alliance Memorandum (SAM) between the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) (coming soon)
Self-Employment Technical Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) (pdf) HTML Version (Feb. 23, 2005)
Created to encourage the workforce investment system to make entrepreneurial training opportunities for people interested in self-employment under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
Strategic Alliance Memorandum (SAM) between the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) (December 2003)
This SAM formalized an agreement between the SBA and DOL to implement a coordinated, interagency initiative to improve opportunities for people with disablities to be employed by small businesses or to become small business owners.
This notice informed the workforce investment system of the implementation of the SBA and DOL December 2003 SAM to assist adult workers with disabilities acquire skills and resources necessary to successfully begin and operate a small business and educate small business owners about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities.
Veterans and Entrepreneurship
The Department of Veterans Affairs Veteran Benefits Administration's offers a Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Program in partnership with the Small Business Administration and the Association of Small Business Development Centers (SBDC). Co-jointly, they provide entrepreneurial assistance to qualified service-connected disabled veterans.
The Small Business Administration's (SBA) Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) is dedicated to serving the veteran entrepreneur by formulating, executing, and promoting policies and programs of the agency that provides assistance to veterans seeking to start and develop small businesses.
Encouraging Future Innovation: Youth Entrepreneurship Education
An ODEP fact sheet on benefits, advantages, how to get started, and resources on entrepreneurship education, including information for youth with disabilities in entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education.
Through a collaboration with the Small Business Administration and Junior Achievement, this site walks the user through five easy steps of business ownership for new or veteran business owners. This site, though geared to youth, has applications for a general audience interested in self-employment.
Other Entrepreneurial Resources
Self-employment, Telecommuting, and Establishing a Small Business as Employment Outcomes (July 2000)
A Technical Assistance Circular (TAC) from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services, Rehabilitation Services Administration that highlights the changes in the Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998, which are contained in the Workforce Investment Act, include two specific references to self-employment, telecommuting, and establishing a small business as viable employment outcomes under the State Vocational Rehabilitation Services Program. The TAC also showcases three publications that contain effective and proven methods for utilizing self-employment, including the establishment of a small business, as an employment outcome.
The Kaufman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity (KIEA) (1996-2006)
The Kauffman Index measures the monthly rate of business creation at the individual owner level, reporting the percent of non-business owners who start businesses with more than fifteen hours worked per week. The matched basic monthly files from the Current Population Survey (CPS) provide a uniquely large, nationally representative panel dataset for measuring this entrepreneurial activity. The total sample size for the period from 1996 to 2006 for the adult population is more than eight million. Detailed demographic information available in the CPS and large sample sizes also allow for estimates of separate indices by gender, race, education, age, and immigrant status. Indices for all states and for the largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) are also calculated.
