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Employer Assistance and Resource Network on Disability Inclusion

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December 2011 EARN Newsletter

December 15, 2011 by YTI Web

EARN Newsletter for December 16, 2011


The Employer Assistance and Resource Network (EARN) monthly newsletter has a new feature called Spotlight. In this section, EARN will recognize employers’ successful practices for outreach, recruitment, hiring, and accommodating workers with disabilities. EARN invites employers who would like to highlight their effective practices in employing people with disabilities to submit articles for future issues of the EARN newsletter. This month, EARN spotlights Microsoft Corporation for their efforts to educate recruiters about focusing on the qualifications of persons with disabilities.

Spotlight


MICROSOFT: PREPARING RECRUITERS TO INTERVIEW JOB CANDIDATES WITH DISABILITIESAn image shows the Microsoft logo.

The Microsoft Corporation continues its dedication to diversity by promoting recruitment models and toolkits to advance the inclusion of individuals with disabilities. Microsoft has a long history of recruiting, hiring and retaining employees with disabilities, and believes hiring a diverse population of employees, including those with disabilities, enhances its products as well as the workplace. One of the ways Microsoft prepares to recruit people with disabilities is by providing New Recruiter Orientation training.

During this two-day training for new full-time Microsoft staffing members, modules are presented that teach general disability etiquette (do’s and don’ts) in a relaxed open atmosphere. Also, to make sure that the information covered during the training is readily accessible, an online “Disability Toolkit” is available for recruiters and other staffing members to reference when they meet and/or interview candidates with disabilities. The primary goal of the in-class training and the online tool is to make certain the interview process highlights the candidate’s strengths and qualifications for the position they are applying for.

The Disability Toolkit contains general information and tips about a variety of sensory and mobility disabilities to assist staffing professionals. The toolkit also contains Microsoft points-of-contact who can provide additional assistance for specialized cases, and sample email templates that staffing coordinators can use to contact hiring managers, minimizing distractions and ensuring a great experience for the candidate.


TELEWORK AS ADA ACCOMMODATION ON THE RISE

The use of telework as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has increased in recent years according to experts. The boom has been spurred partly by technological advances that make it easier for employees to work from home, and by a mandate of the Obama administration requiring that federal agencies implement telework plans by June of 2011. Telework also saves companies money; IBM has saved an estimated $50 million in real estate costs and Sun Microsystems has saved $68 million. Learn more.

OFCCP, EEOC PUBLISH REVISED MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING

An image shows the logo for the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.For the first time in twelve years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) have issued an updated memorandum of understanding (MOU) that outlines how the agencies will coordinate their enforcement efforts and share information regarding discrimination claims under Title VII and Executive Order 11246. Read more.

THINK BEYOND THE LABEL CREATES JOBS PORTAL FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Think Beyond the Label, a public-private partnership that works to increase employment for people with disabilities, launched an online jobs portal that connects job seekers with disabilities to employers that are actively seeking to hire them. The new job search engine gives candidates with disabilities free access to nearly one million job listings from more than 90,000 vetted hiring employers in the private and public sectors. To learn more, click here.

ASSISTANT SECRETARY MARTINEZ BRIEFS HILL ON TOOLKIT

An image of Assistant Secretary Kathleen Martinez speaking at a podium.Office of Disability Employment Policy Assistant Secretary Kathleen Martinez hosted a briefing for congressional staff and other participants to discuss ODEP’s Integrated Employment Toolkit – a collection of resources, reports, papers, policies, fact sheets, case studies, and discussion guides form a variety of sources to accommodate the full range of users and increase capacity and understanding about the value and potential of integrated employment. View the Toolkit.

EARN SIGNS ALLIANCE AGREEMENT WITH THE DISABILITY MANAGEMENT EMPLOYER COALITION (DMEC)

To increase its capacity to address employer inquiries regarding absence management and return-to-work issues, EARN entered into a collaborative relationship with DMEC to provide information, guidance, and resources to facilitate the retention of workers with disabilities. The US Department of Labor estimates that absences, in general, cost employers nationwide approximately $100 billion per year. For more information on these issues and about DMEC, visit www.askEARN.org and www.DMEC.org.

Disability Employment Statistics


Employment rate of persons ages
16-64 with disabilities

28.3%

Employment rate of persons ages
16-64 without disabilities

69.7%

Employment Gap: 41.4%

Frequently Asked Questions

*In November 2011, the employment rate of people 16-64 years of age was 28.3% for persons with disabilities compared with 69.7% for persons without a disability. The gap between the employment rate of persons of 16-64 years of age with and without disabilities was 41.4%, not seasonally adjusted.

WRP DATABASE OF NEW CANDIDATES NOW AVAILABLE

An image of the Workforce Recruitment Program website banner.
On December 6, the 2012 Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) database was launched and is available nationwide. This year’s database contains over 2,590 college students and recent graduates with disabilities from over 270 campuses across the country who are seeking summer or permanent employment in federal agencies and private companies. Of these candidates, 149 have self-identified as veterans and 1407 have self-identified as Schedule A eligible. If you are a federal agency, click here to register for your 2012 account login and password. Private employers can recruit WRP Candidates by completing the online request form.

PRESIDENT OBAMA SIGNS WORK OPPORTUNITY TAX CREDIT (WOTC) FOR VETERANS

An image shows President Obama sitting at a desk signing a document.President Obama signed two new tax credits into law last month that will provide tax credits to companies that hire military veterans and wounded warriors in 2012. The Returning Heroes Tax Credit provides businesses that hire unemployed veterans with a credit of up to $5,600 per veteran, and the Wounded Warriors Tax Credit offers a credit of $9,600 per veteran for businesses that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities.  Learn more.
Veterans Tax Credit Fact Sheet.

DOL SETS HISTORIC HIRING GOAL

Federal contractors and subcontractors would be required to have seven percent of their workforces include people with disabilities under a new rule proposed by the U.S. Department of Labor. The department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) invites public comments on this proposal. Comments must be submitted before Feb. 7, 2012. Learn more.

EARN TO OFFER FREE WEBINAR ON SERVICES AND RESOURCES FOR EMPLOYERS

An image shows the logo for Ask EARN.The Employer Assistance and Resource Center (EARN) will be offering a free 30-minute webinar on EARN services and how employers and federal contractors can utilize www.AskEARN.org to help meet hiring regulations. The webinar will take place on Thursday, January 12 at 2:00 p.m. On January 26 at 2:00p.m., EARN will be hosting an additional webinar on the 2012 Workforce Recruitment Program: Tapping the Talent of Students and Graduates with Disabilities. Click here for more information and to register.

MID-ATLANTIC ADA CENTER PRESENTING 3-PART WEBINAR SERIES

A webinar series focusing on the highlights of the new 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design will take place on January 31, February 7, and February 14, 2012. The cost is $50 for each participant for all three webinars in the series. LU/HSW credits from the AIA will be available. For registration and more information, click here.

PROCTOR & GAMBLE FLEXICENTER OPENS DOORS TO EMPLOYEES WITH DISABILITIES

An image shows the logo for Proctor and Gamble.When Proctor & Gamble was planning its new customization center, P&G executive Miguel Garcia, whose daughter has Down Syndrome, proposed staffing it with persons with disabilities. To date, the company has hired 52 people for its FlexiCenter; about 19 of them with disabilities. The FlexiCenter is, at the moment, the most substantial hiring program for those with disabilities in Maine, and now more local companies are beginning to rethink their hiring policies in light of P&G’s program. Read more.

ODEP Logo

EARN is funded by the
U.S. Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy

  • Whatcanyoudocampaign.org
  • Office of Disability Employment Policy
  • Job Accommodation Network
  • Ticket to Work
  • National Organization on Disability

EARN Announces Winter Holiday Closing

Please note that the Employer Assistance and Resource Center Technical Assistance hotline will be closed for the holidays beginning Monday,December 26, 2011 through Monday, January 2, 2012. The TA hotline will reopen at 8:00 AM EST on Tuesday, January 3, 2012. If you need assistance and resources during this closing, please visit www.AskEARN.org available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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