United States Department of Labor

Customized Employment and Flexible Work Arrangements

Customized Employment

Through Customized Employment, the relationship between employee and employer is personalized in a way that meets the needs of both. It's a universal strategy that benefits many people, including people with disabilities. Reflecting this universal strategy, for many years, ODEP has worked to strengthen the capacity of the nation's workforce development system to improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities through Customized Employment. ODEP has evidence-based research data showing that Customized Employment leads to positive employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities.

In 2001, ODEP implemented a five-year Customized Employment initiative. Today, ODEP continues to promote the strategies and research data on Customized Employment through education, outreach and collaborations with other federal agencies and private organizations on how Customized Employment is an additional workplace flexibility policy (also known as flexible work arrangements) and/or practice within the workforce.

Related resources

• What is Customized Employment? — Fact sheet providing broad overview of Customized Employment and the forms it may take in the workplace.
• The Case for Customized Employment
• ODEP's Response to the Need for Customized Employment — Information about more than 30 ODEP-funded initiatives to document effective Customized Employment strategies.
• ODEP-Funded Customized Employment Materials and Other Technical Assistance Resources — Library of publications and other resources resulting from ODEP-funded Customized Employment initiatives.
• Additional Customized Employment Materials

Customized Employment Videos

These Customized Employment (CE) videos, each specifically focused on Employers, Youth, or a General audience, highlight the benefits of CE, an employment strategy which matches the skills and preferences of the individual with the specific business needs of the employer. This process results in expanded employment opportunities for those who utilize and engage in this innovative, evidenced-based approach to employment. The General audience video has been created in both English and Spanish.

• Solutions for Youth with Disabilities
• Solutions for Employers
• Creating Opportunities and Solutions
• Creating Opportunities and Solutions (Spanish)

Flexible Work Arrangements

Only 17% of U.S. households are considered "traditional" with a husband in the workforce and a wife who is not — making the "nontraditional" the new traditional.

Source: Catalyst 1998: U.S. Department of Labor, 2005

With a growing demand for flexible work arrangements, both employees and employers are interested in implementing practical solutions to help America's workforce balance their many commitments. Employers also want their firms to have a competitive edge in attracting and retaining talented employees. According to the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation's Workplace, Work Force, and Working Families Program, ". . . in today's 21st century work force, nearly four out of five working Americans--across age, income, and stage in life--want more flexibility at work. But a flexibility gap exists: the demand for flexibility far exceeds its availability."

ODEP recognizes that Customized Employment is one form of the growing movement of workplace flexibility or flexible work arrangements (FWAs) — flexibility around the job tasks rather than the location or the schedule. According to the National Council on Disability, "The movement for flexibility in the workplace brings people with disabilities to... the discussion in which the workplace needs of all employees are taken into account." (National Council on Disability's report: Implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act: Challenges, Best Practices, and New Opportunities for Success (July 26, 2007).

• ODEP-funded Flexible Work Arrangement Resources
• Other Flexible Work Arrangement Resources — An index of resources, including several focused on FWAs as a strategy for increasing the employment of people with disabilities.