Research Brief: Employer Practices and the Employment of People with Disabilities: Scoping the Literature

Much of the literature about disability employment aimed at employers has consisted of checklists and recommendations of best practices that are loosely based on academic theories of diversity but lack research-based evidence of their efficacy. Little measurement has been done to determine whether the identified practices show real-world promise in improving employment rates for people with disabilities. As Kreitz (2008) says many of these articles “Rely on brief case studies or anecdotal stories” and are not based in research.” The experimental research that has been done has been heavily focused on the perception of and beliefs about applicants and employees with disabilities and attitudes towards disability itself. To address this information gap, in 2010 the National Institute of Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) issued an RFP for a national-level Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Employer Practices related to employment outcomes among individuals with disabilities. NIDRR noted: “obtaining empirical data about actual employer practices, and further investigating the extent to which these practices are associated with employment for individuals with disabilities, would inform the development of interventions to improve the number and diversity of employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.

Information Technology and the Workplace: Implications for Persons with Disabilities

The Internet improves access to employment and community for many people. However, there is growing concern that many Web sites are inaccessible to people with certain disabilities. This article examines the impact on people with disabilities of online human resources processes used for employee recruitment, benefits, and training. In 2002, Cornell University staff reviewed the accessibility of 10 Job boards and 31 corporate e-recruiting Web sites. Human resource (HR) professionals are well positioned to report on key issues regarding these processes. A survey of 433 HR representatives was conducted regarding their organizations\u27 use of information and Web technology in HR processes; knowledge of computer/Web barriers to employees with disabilities; and familiarity with assistive technology and resources. The authors summarize current literature and legislation relevant to Web accessibility, and discuss implications of their findings for businesses and people with disabilities in the workplace

Comparative Study of Workplace Policy and Practices Contributing to Disability Nondiscrimination

Objective: To assess the impact of disability nondiscrimination legislation on employer practices in the United States and the United Kingdom. Study Design: U.S. and U.K. human resource professionals were surveyed about their experience with implementation of the legislation. Results: Both U.S. and U.K. employers are responding to their respective legislation by making accommodations-adjustments needed by applicants and employees with disabilities. Conclusions: Rehabilitation psychologists and other health care professionals working with people with disabilities must understand employee rights and employer responsibilities under this legislation, know where employers may have difficulty in responding to an accommodation request, and be familiar with the existing workplace resources and processes that can support an effective response to such requests

The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health: Contemporary Literature Overview

This article reviews the literature from the 3 years since the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health\u27s (ICF\u27s) endorsement, focusing on those articles that discuss (a) what the ICF means and how it can be used; (b) the general utility of the ICF for specific fields, such as nursing, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, and audiology; (c) examples of applications for classification in particular disorders, such as chronic health conditions, neuromusculoskeletal conditions, cognitive disorders, mental disorders, sensory disorders, and primary and secondary conditions in children; (d) uses of the ICF to recode prior work across multiple surveys and across country coding schemes on disability-related national survey items; and (e) governmental uses of the ICF in the United States and selected countries abroad. Future directions needed to effectively implement the ICF across rehabilitation policy, research, and practice are discussed. Our review suggests that the actual application of the ICF is as yet somewhat limited because the World Health Organization (WHO) endorsement is so recent; the earliest references using the ICF correspond with the WHO\u27s 2001 endorsement. Standardized application of the ICF in North America has yet to be realized in anticipation of the release of the clinical implementation manual (see Reed et al., 2005); thus, it is not surprising to find limited research on clinical implementation of the ICF. From our review of the literature and of unpublished reports, it seems clear that the ICF is being used in a preliminary fashion to inform conceptual frameworks in research and for recoding data from other health classifications. Recently completed and ongoing research has undoubtedly not yet been published

HR’s Role in Managing Disability in the Workplace

It is estimated that there are 43 million Americans with disabilities, many of whom are significantly unemployed or underemployed compared with their nondisabled peers. This article describes the role of employers, management, and especially the HR professional in minimizing disability discrimination. It describes the findings of a recent study of private and federal sector employers’ responses to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Rehabilitation Act, and other disability nondiscrimination legislation, and points to areas that this research indicates are ways to successfully maximize the integration of people with disabilities into the workplace

HR Processes and IT Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities: Improving Employer Practices under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act

The purpose of this research is to investigate the impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) employment provisions on the employment practices of private sector business. The intended outcome of the research is to assist in the identification of employment practices that have been the most challenging in implementing the ADA, and to identify interventions that can be used by private sector employers and persons with disabilities to address these employment practices. Employment policy and practices that enhance both the hiring and retention of workers with disabilities are being examined. Most recently, our focus has been in information technology accessibility in the recruitment and employment processes

Accessible IT for People with Disabilities: HR Considerations

Human resource (HR) representatives were interviewed regarding their organizations use of Web technology in HR processes and computer accessibility issues in the workplace. The survey addressed: the organizations use of Web technology in HR processes; knowledge and perceptions of barriers to the use of computer/Web technology to employees with disabilities; and familiarity with assistive technology (equipment to improve functionality for people with disabilities) and resources. The respondents represented a wide variety of industries and organizational sizes

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

ILR Impact Brief - Community College Websites and Barriers to Access

[Excerpt] Community colleges, on average, serve 335 students with disabilities, although that number climbs to 5,000 at the largest college surveyed for this project. Nearly all community colleges that participated in the survey rely on the web for a variety of student services, but only half have instituted requirements regarding web accessibility for individuals with disabilities. Actual evaluations of accessibility and ease of use revealed that none of the websites analyzed complied with all federal standards on accessibility, and many web pages encompassed usability obstacles (e.g., unfamiliar terminology, unintuitive navigation schemes, and hard-to-read design elements) that affected disabled and non-disabled individuals alike

State of the Science Conference: Abstract and Executive Summary

This document provides an overview of research findings presented and audience response at the “state-the-science” conference conducted by Cornell University October 22-23, 2013 in Washington, D.C. on the topic of Innovative Research on Employment Practices: Improving Employment for People with Disabilities