Accommodating Employees With and Without Disabilities

Efforts to recruit and retain employees with disabilities are often tempered by employers’ concerns over potential workplace accommodation costs. This study reports on accommodations requested and granted in intensive case studies of eight companies, based on more than 5,000 employee and manager surveys, and interviews and focus groups with 128 managers and employees with disabilities. Two unique contributions are that we analyze accommodations for employees without disabilities as well as for those with disabilities, and compare perspectives on accommodation costs and benefits among employees, their coworkers, and their managers. We find people with disabilities are more likely than those without disabilities to request accommodations, but the types of accommodations requested and the reported costs and benefits are similar for disability and non-disability accommodations. In particular, fears of high accommodation costs and negative reactions of coworkers are not realized; all groups tend to report generally positive coworker reactions. Multilevel models indicate granting accommodations has positive spillover effects on attitudes of coworkers, as well as a positive effect on attitudes of requesting employees, but only when coworkers are supportive. Consistent with recent theorizing and other studies, our results suggest the benefits from a corporate culture of flexibility and attention to the individualized needs of employees

Labor Force Participation and Income of Individuals with Disabilities in Sheltered and Competitive Employment: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analyses of Seven States During the 1980s and 1990s

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the labor force participation and wages of individuals with disabilities who have transitioned from facility-based (i.e., sheltered) work to employment in integrated and competitive settings. The investigators had access to data from seven states on the labor force participation and wages of more than 3000 individuals with disabilities who have moved from institutional to community placements over the past two decades. Among the findings: the majority of individuals in these geographically diverse samples were unemployed over time; sheltered employment prepared some individuals for entry into employment in integrated settings and resulted in substantial gains in earned income and reported higher levels of daily living skills. However, the daily life functioning of many individuals who remained in sheltered employment was comparable to that of those who transitioned to integrated employment. Avenues for future research, and legal and policy analysis are discussed

Übergänge nach der Schule als "zweite Chance"? Eine quantitative und qualitative Analyse der Ausbildungschancen von Schülerinnen und Schülern aus Förderschulen "Lernen"

Die Studie beschreibt erstmals deutschlandweit die Ausbildungschancen von FörderschülerInnen mit »Lernbehinderung« und untersucht quantitativ und qualitativ, wie diese erklärt werden können. Überprüft wird, welche Bedeutung der Förderschulbesuch sowie die Berufs- und Rehaberatung der Agenturen für Arbeit für die Übergänge nach der Schule haben. Zudem wird analysiert, wie erklärt werden kann, dass manchen Jugendlichen der Übergang in Ausbildung trotz vieler Hindernisse gelingt. Damit trägt die Studie wesentlich zum Verständnis von Bildungsarmut im Lebensverlauf und der Debatte um »schulische Inklusion« bei. (DIPF/Orig.

Childhood Obesity Task Forces Established by State Legislatures, 2001-2010

Introduction - States and communities are considering policy and environmental strategies, including enacting legislation, to reduce and prevent childhood obesity. One legislative approach has been to create task forces to understand key issues and develop a course of action. The goal of this study was to describe state-level, childhood obesity task forces in the United States created by legislation from 2001 through 2010. Methods - We used the Center for Disease Control and Prevention\u27s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity database to identify state-level childhood obesity task forces created through legislation from 2001 through 2010. Results - We identified 21 states that had enacted legislation creating childhood obesity task forces of which 6 has created more than one task force. Most task forces were charged with both gathering and reviewing information and making recommendations for obesity-prevention actions in the state. Most legislation required that task forces include representation from the state legislature, state agencies, community organizations, and community members. Conclusion - Evaluation of the effectiveness of obesity-prevention task forces and the primary components that contribute to their success may help to determine the advantages of the use of such strategies in obesity prevention

Target localization of 3D versus 4D cone beam computed tomography in lipiodol-guided stereotactic radiotherapy of hepatocellular carcinomas

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From coinductive proofs to exact real arithmetic: theory and applications

Based on a new coinductive characterization of continuous functions we extract certified programs for exact real number computation from constructive proofs. The extracted programs construct and combine exact real number algorithms with respect to the binary signed digit representation of real numbers. The data type corresponding to the coinductive definition of continuous functions consists of finitely branching non-wellfounded trees describing when the algorithm writes and reads digits. We discuss several examples including the extraction of programs for polynomials up to degree two and the definite integral of continuous maps

Nanohybrid biosensor based on mussel-inspired electro-cross-linking of tannic acid capped gold nanoparticles and enzymes

Complementary tools to classical analytical methods, enzymatic biosensors are widely applied in medical diagnosis due to their high sensitivity, potential selectivity, and their possibility of miniaturization/automation. Among the different protocols of enzyme immobilization, the covalent binding and cross-linking of enzymes ensure the great stability of the developed biosensor. Obtained manually by drop-casting using a specific cross-linker, this immobilization process is not suitable for the specific functionalization of a single electrode out of a microelectrode array. In the present work, we developed a nanohybrid enzymatic biosensor with high sensitivity by a mussel-inspired electro-cross-linking process using a cheap and abundant natural molecule (tannic acid, TA), gold salt, and native enzymes. Based on the use of a cheap natural compound and gold salt, this electro-cross-linking process based on catechol/amine reaction (i) is versatile, likely to be applied on any kind of enzymes, (ii) does not require the synthesis of a specific cross-linker, (ii) gives enzymatic biosensors with high and very stable sensitivity over two weeks upon storage at room temperature and (iv) is temporally and spatially controlled, allowing the specific functionalization of a single electrode out of a microelectrode array. Besides the development of microbiosensors, this process can also be used for the design of enzymatic biofuel cells