Government Strategies, Initiatives and Innovations in Disability Management
W. Roy Grizzard, Jr.
Assistant Secretary, U. S. Department of Labor
Office of Disability Employment Policy
Third International Forum on Disability Management
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
October 9, 2006
Good morning. I’m Roy Grizzard, United States Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Office of Disability Employment Policy.
Thank you for your kind invitation to address this esteemed body – Ministers, colleagues and honored guests.
I regret I am unable to join you in person. The month of October is Disability Employment Awareness Month in the United States, and obligations associated with this annual event preclude my attendance with you.
ABOUT ODEP
I have the honor of being the first Assistant Secretary for the Office of Disability Employment Policy – the only agency within the U. S. Government dealing solely with disability employment policy. We are known as “ODEP.”
Congress authorized ODEP in the Department of Labor’s fiscal year 2001 budget appropriation. This agency was created in response to the continuing low rate of employment among persons with disabilities.
ODEP focuses its initiatives on full inclusion of people with disabilities in the 21st Century workforce.
Our mission is to provide national leadership by developing and influencing disability-related employment policy, and best practices.
We work with many partners – service providers, the workforce development system, and of course, employers, to name just a few. We keep our eyes on both the supply and demand side of the employment equation.
Our vision is “a world in which people with disabilities have unlimited employment opportunities.”
ODEP develops policy, programs and demonstration projects to connect businesses with the talent they need to succeed.
POLICY INITIATIVES
ODEP has funded grants to serve as laboratories for initiatives. Among our policy initiatives are Customized Employment and Youth Transition from School to Work Initiatives.
Customized employment means structuring the employment relationship between job seekers and employers to meet the needs of both. It is based on a personalized determination of the strengths, requirements, and interests of a person with a complex life.
It is not a program, but rather a set of principles and strategies that result in employment.
We are learning that customized employment works for people with the most severe disabilities.
Our findings show that these individuals have gained quality employment with increased wages and benefits. For example, the average salary is $8.60 per hour.
We are also finding success in our youth policy initiatives. For example, ODEP funding for a youth technical assistance effort has resulted in several important products.
We have developed Guideposts – five key educational and career development interventions that are important to youth to prepare them for skills they need to enter the workforce.
We have developed KSAs (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities) of Youth Service Practitioners. These KSAs have been adopted as professional development certification criteria for workforce professionals who work with youth.
Many of us, myself included, have benefited from mentors. ODEP has developed a Mentoring Guide for young people with disabilities, and we supported the First National Conference on Mentoring for Youth with Disabilities – held just last month.
JAN & EARN
A large part of our efforts are devoted to providing technical assistance to employers. Among these services are the Job Accommodation Network, or JAN, and the Employer Assistance and Recruiting Network, generally referred to as EARN.
JAN provides free telephone and electronic information on job accommodations, assistive devices, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. In addition, JAN monitors the costs of the accommodations they recommend so that we can determine average costs, as well as benefits to the employer.
JAN has developed a national – and international – reputation through its thorough and individualized approach to helping employers make workplace accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
JAN’s website (www.jan.wvu.edu) gets more than 2,600,000 hits each year. One of the top concerns for employers who call JAN is retention – how to keep a valued employee who has developed a disability.
EARN is a free telephone and electronic referral service that connects employers with skilled job candidates with disabilities. EARN’s website -- www.earnworks.com – gets more than 20,500 hits per month.
In carrying out its purpose, EARN reaches out to employers across the United States. EARN has worked with nearly 1,400 employers and over 4,500 service providers to identify job opportunities and viable candidates for more than 16,000 jobs.
BUSINESS CASE
In the United States alone, according to the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, by the year 2014, some 36 million people are expected to leave their occupations and need to be replaced.
Right now businesses have the opportunity to tap into a young and growing talent pool.
There are more educated and better prepared workers with disabilities than ever before. In the United States, nearly 10 percent of all undergraduates -- more than 1.5 million students -- report having one or more disabilities.
In the last few years ODEP has done research on employers, their business needs, their views, and the perceived impediments to hiring people with disabilities.
EARN conducted 26 focus groups with executives and human resources professionals across an array of industries in 13 media markets.
We learned that the most prevalent employer concerns were:
(1) finding and hiring qualified employees,
(2) finding employees with the right work ethic, and
(3) managing costs and benefits.
We know that there are major challenges ahead. Businesses must find ways to meet the challenges of an aging, shrinking labor force.
ODEP’s employer research found that investing in workers with disabilities is a sound investment, and we share this message with employers across the United States.
Permit me to address each of the key employer issues:
First, employers’ top concern is finding qualified employees.
We can show that more and more young people with disabilities are graduating from high school and college. We can show that people with disabilities have creative problem solving skills, and the talents, skills, and experiences for which employers are recruiting.
Second, employers are concerned with performance and retention.
We can show that workers with disabilities have performance and retention ratings comparable to those of employees without disabilities.
Third, employers say job accommodations are costly.
We can show that almost half of the accommodations that are needed actually cost nothing, and the others typically cost $600.
NEW FREEDOM INITIATIVE AWARDS
At the Department of Labor, Secretary Elaine L. Chao recognizes individuals, non-profit organizations and businesses that have implemented effective practices in the recruitment, employment, retention and promotion of people with disabilities.
To date, she has presented the Secretary’s New Freedom Initiative (NFI) Award to 13 businesses, and will recognize 4 more on October 26th.
CIRCLE OF CHAMPIONS
ODEP has invited the NFI Award companies to be part of a Circle of Champions. These include such international companies as IBM and Manpower, as well as corporations and small businesses within the United States.
In meeting with these “champions,” we learned about their experiences, which strategies work and which don’t. And, we were struck by their commitment to collaborate on new and innovative strategies to help ODEP expand its reach, and strengthen its impact.
WORKFORCE EXCELLENCE INITIATIVE
A large part of our interaction with business is through our Workforce Excellence Initiative. This initiative seeks to raise awareness among employers that hiring people with disabilities is good for business.
Through the Workforce Excellence Initiative we recognize companies whose existing work on disability employment practices is a model for other employers. We also recognize companies that are willing to explore the integration of people with disabilities into recruitment and employment strategies.
As part of the Workforce Excellence Initiative, we are also creating strategic alliances with both businesses and organizations that represent businesses.
IMPORTANCE OF THIS CONFERENCE
At this conference, each of you will have the opportunity to learn how to support your efforts to build and maintain an inclusive workforce.
I applaud the organizers and your theme: “Disability Management – Working for the Long-Term.” That is certainly an international goal.
You will have the opportunity to hear from a distinguished group of experts. You will learn about the latest initiatives, programs, ideas and innovations being developed in a number of countries.
I know that if you take back and implement at least some of what you learn here, you and your organization will profit from the experience. And that profit will include the employers’ bottom line.
Thank you for your attention. I wish you a most successful conference.
