Jun 15, 2011 Newsletter

INFORMATION YOU CAN USE:

EARN STAFF TO PRESENT AT THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE SOCIETY OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

EARN staff will travel to the SHRM 2011 Annual Conference this month to present “The Interplay Between Reasonable Accommodations and Medical Leaves: Legal and Practical Implications.”  This presentation will highlight regulations and guidelines, court cases, and best practices by analyzing a specific case study and involving audience participation.

This topic is especially pertinent in light of the EEOC’s examination of the use of leave as a reasonable accommodation.

Judy Young, Project Manager of the National Employer Technical Assistance Center which operates the Employer Assistance and Resource Network (EARN) call center and website, and Susan W. Brecher, Esq., Director of Cornell University’s ILR School Human Capital Development Program will present this session on Monday, June 27th at the SHRM 2011 Annual Conference and Exposition in Las Vegas, June 26-29.

We hope to see you at our session!  For more information on this session, click here or visit http://annual.shrm.org/ for general conference information.

WEBINAR JUNE 30TH: LEADING CORPORATE DISABILITY INCLUSION PRACTICES

Successful businesses recognize that incorporating disability in all diversity and inclusion practices positively impacts their company’s bottom line. This webinar will feature business leaders who will provide valuable insights on the successes their companies have realized through the inclusion of people with disabilities, including returning military, in all aspects of their corporate enterprise.

Specific topics will include:

• Recruiting and hiring veterans with disabilities;
• Inclusion of persons with disabilities as part of your diversity strategy;
• Community strategic partnerships; and,
• Questions and Answers

For more information, visit www.askearn.org.

NEARLY HALF OF FEDERAL CONTRACTORS AUDITED BY OFCCP OVER THE PAST YEAR

According to a PeopleClick Authoria Research Institute survey of 201 affirmative action clients, sixty percent of contractors who reported being audited by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) said they had undergone multiple audits during the same time period — higher than similar findings last year, and a likely reflection of OFCCP’s increased enforcement activities under the Obama Administration.

The Employer Assistance and Resource Network (EARN) can provide technical assistance to federal contractors who are working to maintain compliance with federal regulations.

Contact EARN at 1-855-ASK-EARN (275-3276) or visit www.AskEARN.org  for assistance or more information!

    DID YOU KNOW?…

US LABOR DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES FUNDING TO IMPROVE EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

The U.S. Department of Labor announced the availability of approximately $20 million to fund state-run programs that will improve education, training and employment opportunities for adults and youth with disabilities.

The Disability Employment Initiative is a joint project of the Labor Department’s Employment and Training Administration and its Office of Disability Employment Policy.  Grantees under the initiative are state workforce agencies that will collaborate with workforce investment boards and local agencies.  The complete solicitation for applications is available at http://www.doleta.gov/grants.

“It is vital that state and local agencies work together with private sector partners to improve [employment] statistics,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in announcing the new funds.

To read more, click here.

NEW ADAAA REGULATIONS WENT INTO EFFECT ON MAY 24

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) estimates that the new Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) regulations will result in between 400,000 and 1.2 million new accommodations for employees across the U.S. over the next year, at a mean annual cost of $150 per accommodation. The new regulations can be found at http://federalregister.gov/a/2011-6056.

For more information on workplace accommodations, visit the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) website at www.askjan.org.

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION UNDER THE ADAAA WEBINAR JUNE 22

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is presenting a webinar June 22nd from 12:00-1:30 p.m. ET entitled “Reasonable Accommodation Under the ADAAA: A Practical Approach for Your Agency.”  Participants will learn what new requirements agencies face and what programs an organization must change to fit the regulations’ parameters.

For more information and to register, click here.

THE DISABILITY EMPLOYMENT SITUATION:

MAY 2011*

Employment rate of persons ages 16-64 with disabilities: 26.6%
Employment rate of persons ages 16-64 without disabilities: 69.9%
Employment Gap: 43.3%
Commonly Used Terms

*In May 2011, the employment rate of people 16-64 years of age was 26.6% for persons with disabilities compared with 69.9% for persons without a disability. The gap between the employment rate of persons of 16-64 years of age with and without disabilities was 43.3%, not seasonally adjusted.

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NEW RESEARCH GROUP ESTABLISHED TO REMOVE EMPLOYMENT BARRIERS FOR WORKERS WITH DISABILITIES SEEKS MEMBERS

The Conference Board announced the formation of a new Research Working Group, “Improving Employment Outcomes for Employees with Disabilities.”

Partially funded by the Cornell ILR School and the U.S. Department of Education, the group will bring together HR executives, line executives, and outside experts to study the significant disparities that still exist between individuals with disabilities and the rest of the American workforce and establish best practices for counteracting them.

Several Fortune 500 companies have already joined the research team and membership remains open. The group’s first meeting was held June 1–2 in New York, and there will be five additional in-person and virtual meetings over the next six months, culminating in a final report.

Contact Daria Lamb at daria.lamb@conferenceboard.org or (212) 339-0428 for further information or click here.

BE PREPARED FOR NEW EEOC ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS

At the recent program on Advanced Employment Law and Litigation, two high level officials of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) spoke on the major issues employers will face this year:

•    Disability discrimination: new regulations have led to an increase in claims and cases.
•    Credit check bias: credit checks can lead to class-wide disparate impact because minorities and women may have more credit problems than others.
•    Use of unemployment as rejection criteria: minorities and women may have been more adversely affected by layoffs in this recession.
•    English language usage:   appropriate enforcement of English-only rules.

To read more, click here.

ARCHIVED EEOC JUNE 8TH WEBINAR PRESENTATION AND MATERIALS NOW AVAILABLE

Did you miss the June 8th webinar, “EEOC to Examine Use of Leave as Reasonable Accommodation”?  The archived presentation and materials can now be accessed at your convenience by clicking http://www.askearn.org/m-archive.cfm.

The webinar featured invited panelists who discussed the appropriate use of leave as a reasonable accommodation and compliance with relevant regulations.

For information on other web events and more, visit www.AskEarn.org.