Disability management: Key concepts and techniques for an aging workforce

The aging workforce is likely to result in increasing numbers of workers with disabilities. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that the 45-54 and 55-64 year-old population in the United States will grow by nearly 44.2 million (17%) and 35 million (39%) in the next ten years (U.S. Census Bureau, 2004). By the year 2010, this group will account for nearly half (44%) of the working age population (20-64), and the number of people with disabilities between the ages of 50 and 65 will almost double (Weathers, 2006). Disability management and accommodation policies and practices readily lend themselves to addressing the challenges employers will face with an aging workforce, and the increasing prevalence of disability which these demographics bring. Proactive education about ways to maximize the productivity of an aging workforce, effective case management, and workplace accommodation can significantly contribute to maximizing aging worker retention

Technology Changes Everything: Inclusive Tech and Jobs for a Diverse Workforce: Pierce Memorial Foundation Report

This document serves as the final report to the Pierce Foundation for funding to support the design and implementation of a 1.5-day Forum entitled “Technology Changes Everything: A Forum on Inclusive Tech and Jobs for a Diverse Workforce” conducted in NYC on October 26-27, 2017 at Baruch College. The conference idea was conceived to address the need to raise awareness across a number of distinct areas where technology is currently impacting employment outcomes for people with disabilities. The topics ranged from one as straightforward as the critical need for attention on equitably integrating individuals with disabilities into the rapidly exploding tech sector workforce, to the much more nuanced and complex application of algorithmic screening and job-matching tools increasingly used in online job applications and selection processes. Other topics focused on were equitable access to entrepreneurship opportunities, inclusive design in technology-based products and services, and the growing targeted focus of technology sector and tech-intensive industries in affirmative recruitment and hiring of individuals with Autism

The Green Economy and Job Creation: Inclusion of People with Disabilities

The percentage of total employment associated with green goods and services has increased in the United States over the past several years, presenting employment opportunities in a number of related emerging fields. As employment options arise to provide green goods and services, people with disabilities should have equitable employment opportunities in this growth sector of the American economy. A focused strategy to train and engage people with disabilities in the green economy can provide a talented and largely untapped segment of the U.S. workforce, a greater opportunity to participate in this growing employment sector than previously realized

Leveraging Employer Practices in Global Regulatory Frameworks to Improve Employment Outcomes for People with Disabilities

Work is an important part of life, providing both economic security and a forum to contribute one’s talents and skills to society, thereby anchoring the individual in a social role. However, access to work is not equally available to people with disabilities globally. Regulatory environments that prohibit discrimination and support vocational training and educational opportunities constitute a critical first step toward economic independence. However, they have not proven sufficient in themselves. In this article, we aim to infuse deeper consideration of employer practice and demand-side policy reforms into global policy discussions of the right to work for people with disabilities. We begin by documenting the employment and economic disparities existing for people with disabilities globally, followed by a description of the international, regional, and local regulatory contexts aiming to improve labor market outcomes for people with disabilities. Next, we examine how policies can leverage employer interests to further address inequalities. We discuss employer policies and practices demonstrated in the research to facilitate recruitment, hiring, career development, retention, and meaningful workplace inclusion. The goal of the article is to synthesize existing international literature on employment rights for people with disabilities with the employer perspective

Disability in the Workplace in China: Situation Assessment

A compelling argument can be made that employment of people with disabilities should be gaining recognition as an underutilized weapon in the talent wars of Asia. One has only to look at the proportion of people with disabilities that make up our communities, the continuing employment disparities that people with disabilities continue to face and the resulting high levels of poverty for this population – up against the talent shortages in fast-growth markets across the region. As China’s skewed demographic dynamics become increasingly apparent, resulting in a rapidly aging population and a diminishing supply of workforce entrants, an increasing share of the workforce will include older employees with disabilities, necessitating a fundamental change in workplace practices involving people with disabilities, as well as a greater need to look at persons with disabilities as a potential source of talent. Although China has created a broad legislative framework to protect the right to work for persons with disabilities, it lacks specificity and clear measures of enforcement, as evidenced in continued employment marginalization, poor educational outcomes, and thus higher poverty levels of persons with disabilities. To further understanding of workforce inclusion of persons with disabilities in China, and to identify practical ways forward for employers, The Conference Board China Center and the K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability (YTI) at Cornell University’s ILR School partnered to explore how companies can tap the talent pool of people with disabilities and improve their employment outcomes. The scope of the research encompassed a series of interviews with disability rights-focused NGOs in China, a detailed literature review, a comprehensive review of China’s regulatory framework supporting employment for persons with disabilities, and a detailed assessment of the demographics of disability and the status of people with disabilities in China such as prevalence rates, access to education, employment disparities and resulting poverty and household income rates. This report draws from the broader research findings and provides business practitioners with an overview of the current situation, challenges, and root causes of employment barriers for persons with disabilities in China. To complement this work, The China Center and YTI convened a practitioner roundtable in Beijing in September 2018. Participants explored in detail how the official, publicly available data on living and working conditions of persons with disabilities compare to actual experiences of employers in China, whether companies are actively recruiting disabled workers, what the internal and external obstacles are to recruitment, and what the impact of the government quota system is, for good or for bad. A separate report on this roundtable is also availabl

Research Brief: Inside the Workplace: Case Studies of Factors Influencing Engagement of People with Disabilities

Researchers are working to address the issue of disability discrimination in employment and discover ways to maximize disability inclusion. However, a more precise understanding of the experiences of individuals within the workplace is needed. The study examined the inclusiveness of work units, the quality of supervisor relationships with subordinates with disabilities, job characteristics and fit, access to mentoring, and coworkers’ attitudes as potential factors impacting the experiences of people with disabilities. It also looked at obstacles that may impede the effective implementation of disability practices. In addition, the issue of disability disclosure is currently receiving a great deal of attention. The recent revisions to the regulations for Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 mean that federal contractors will be expected to employ enough individuals with disabilities to comprise 7% of their workforce. Employers must rely on the willingness of employees to disclose their disability in order to meet these goals. Very little is currently known about the conditions that make it more or less likely that an individual with a disability will feel comfortable disclosing their disability, to whom they are most likely to disclose their disability, and whether individuals who do disclose their disability have positive disclosure experiences

What Works? How Federal Contractors are Implementing Section 503: Survey Report

In September 2013, The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) published the final rule making changes to the regulations implementing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (Section 503). In March 2014, new regulations went into effect, setting new requirements for federal contractors and subcontractors, related to non-discrimination and affirmative action in the employment of qualified individuals with disabilities. For example, contractors now are required to offer applicants and employees the opportunity to self-identify as a person with a disability and further to use the data collected to understand their progress toward a 7% utilization goal for employment of individuals with disabilities.1 This survey is part of a larger project entitled Initial Impact of Section 503 Rules: Identifying Effective Employer Practices and Trends in Disability Violations among Federal Contractors funded by the US Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office. The overall goal of this project is to understand the initial impact of these regulations on employer practices and consequently on the employment environment for individuals with disabilities. The purpose of the survey summarized in this report is to build an understanding of contractor disability-inclusive policy and practice in initially responding to Section 503 regulations. The survey is titled: What Works? How Federal Contractors Are Implementing Section 503, and is referred to as Section 503 Survey in this report

What Works? How Federal Contractors are Implementing Section 503: Executive Summary

This survey is part of a larger project entitled “Initial Impact of Section 503 Rules: Identifying Effective Employer Practices and Trends in Disability Violations among Federal Contractors” funded by the US Department of Labor, Chief Evaluation Office. The overall goal of this proposed project is to understand the initial impact of these regulations on employer practices and consequently on the employment environment for individuals with disabilities. The purpose of the survey summarized in this report is to build an understanding of contractor disability inclusive policy/practice in initially responding to Section 503 regulations. The survey is titled: What Works? How Federal Contractors Are Implementing Section 503, and is referred to as Section 503 Survey in this report

Disability in a Technology-Driven Workplace

New Internet and Web-based technology applications have meant significant cost and time efficiencies to many American businesses. However, many employers have not yet fully grasped the impact of these new information and communication technologies on applicants and employees with certain disabilities such as vision impairments, hearing problems or limited dexterity. Although not all applicants and employees who have a disability may experience IT-access problems, to select groups it can pose a needless barrier. The increasing dominance of IT in the workplace presents both a challenge and an opportunity for workers with disabilities and their employers. It will be up to HR professionals to ensure that Web-based HR processes and workplace technologies are accessible to their employees with disabilities.

The Impact of Business Size on Employer Response

More than 10 years have passed since the employment provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) came into effect for employers of 15 or more employees. Americans with disabilities continue to be more unemployed and underemployed than their nondisabled peers. Small businesses, with fewer than 500 employees, continue to be the most rapidly growing part of our national economy and therefore a potential source of employment for American job seekers with disabilities. A Cornell University survey of human resource professionals examined how employers of different sizes are complying with the ADA. The authors point to needed ADA and accommodation services that rehabilitation counselors can provide to employers