Competitive Integrated: Employment First

Since October is National Disability Employment Month, it seems fitting that this issue of RAISE The Standard, is focused on real employment. Get ready to learn more about competitive jobs, integrated settings, and real wages. It’s the “gold standard” of transition outcomes for students with disabilities.

Watch this TEDx talk by Chantel Buck as she asks us to “Re-Think Disabilities in the Workplace.”

Communicating About Accessibility and Accommodations

Did you know that it is not just employees with disabilities who have a responsibility to communicate? Employers have to communicate about accessibility and accommodations too!

This month, we bring you three communication tools for employers to better communicate with the public, their own employees, and new hires and job seekers.

Click here to download the Competitive Integrated Employment Toolkit.

It means that all people - including those with complex support needs - are presumed to be capable of competitive integrated employment. It means that the general workforce should be the first and preferred option for students and adults with disabilities receiving assistance from publicly-funded systems – and that means schools!

For students in the transition years, that means getting ready for regular jobs like everyone else: in typical work settings, working side-by-side with people without disabilities, earning regular wages and benefits and being part of the economic mainstream.

“Readiness” is not part of the equation in Employment First. For most people, it’s presumed they will become employed. But people with disabilities often have to first prove that they are “ready” for employment. Under Employment First, it is assumed that individuals are capable of working until proven otherwise. If a decision is made that the individual won’t pursue employment, other service options can be explored. “Employment First” does not mean “Employment Only.”

For more details, we turn to our colleagues at APSE, Association of People Supporting Employment First.

Typically, when it came to publicly-funded services, employment in the community has been among a number of choices presented to people with disabilities. In many cases, individuals with disabilities have been shuttled to facility-based segregated services. Under Employment First, assistance to find a job in the community, and become a tax-paying citizen, is the preferred choice.

The workforce participation rate for individuals with disabilities is about 1/3 that of people without disabilities. Yet it has been shown that with assistance, accommodations, and encouragement, many more people with disabilities can work successfully in the community.

Employment First is a road out of poverty. Statistics show that if you have a disability you are much more likely to be poor. In fact, working age adults with disabilities are living below the poverty line at twice the rate of the general population (US Census). Almost two-thirds (65%) of the individuals in poverty long-term are people with disabilities (Mathematica Policy Research).

Yes. For example, in the area of employment services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Washington State has a long-standing commitment to policies and practices focused on employment in the community as the first priority. The end result is that 89% of individuals served by the Washington State system are in integrated employment services, compared to a national average of 20%. Many states are even well below this average with some at less than 10%

Click here to download the full fact sheet on Employment First from APEE.

Learn more about Employment First here, at The Center On Transition at the University of Virginia

Click here to read or download the guide, “Promoting Employment for People with Disabilities Through Statewide Coordination.”

ASAN, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, has developed a plain language guide to help self-advocates understand employment policy and learn how things could be different. The guide is intended to help people with disabilities effectively advocate for an end to policies that hurt them and for the adoption of policies that can help.

Click here to access ASAN’s plain language guide Real Work For Real Pay: A Self-Advocate’s Guide to Employment Policy.

You can click here to access the full, detailed guide.

RAISE blogger Anomie Fatale is back for an encore writing about the role and responsibility of care givers: Click here to read her full blog post.

The journey to finding "the right job" is never a linear path.

Click here to read RAISE blogger Rachel Shandler's efforts and perspective as she explored options that led to a job she values.

RAISE Transition Summit - Check out this recorded webinar, produced by RAISE. Click here to view or listen to Transition in a Brave New World.

Accessibility 101 - In this recorded RAISE webinar, speakers from the American Foundation for the Blind describe the concept of "accessibility," what it means for people with disabilities, and how organizations can be inclusive with their digital platforms. Click here to access Accessibility 101 recorded webinar.

Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Accessibility - In this recorded RAISE webinar, speakers from American Foundation for the Blind talk about the tools and methodology used to test accessibility. The goal of this session is to be practical and realistic: what can an organization do to make an improvement right now? Click here to access Tips, Tools, and Techniques for Accessibility recorded webinar.

In our next issue of RAISE The Standard:

RAISE The Standard enewsletter identifies and shares resources that the Rehabilitation Services Administration Parent Training and Information Centers (RSA-PTI) can use and share with families.