NWI TIMES BUSINESS REPORTER nwitimes.com | by Bowdeya Tweh : July 24, 2011
TIMES DIVERSITY JOB FAIR REPORT:
Roy Slazyk's life changed in November 2006 after suffering a work-related injury on a job site in Harvey five years ago.
And sadly it changed again in January when the Oshkosh Specialty Vehicles plant he worked in closed, said his wife Mary Ellen Slazyk.
After a fall from a trailer, Slazyk said her husband broke three ribs, had three pelvic fractures, and had significant damage to his left shoulder and knee. The once able-bodied electrician suffered injuries so severe that in order to continue working, he was provided the accommodation of working a sit-down security job.
Mary Ellen Slazyk, of Hammond, said her husband is having a difficult time finding work because the injuries and corresponding surgeries relegated him to not being able to spend a lot of time on his feet. She said she isn't sure when and where her 58-year-old husband will be able to find employment.
"When you're older like my husband with his physical limitations, there's no jobs out there," Mary Ellen Slazyk said.
In a job market where employment is difficult to find for youth, college graduates and experienced workers, employment experts say the task now is even tougher for people with disabilities. However, people who work with nonprofit agencies and federally funded groups say despite challenges, resources are available to help and are calling for more businesses to become partners to help improve the labor picture.
Signed into law in 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act protects the civil rights of people with disabilities in employment, accessing public services including transportation, and guarantees access to public accommodations such as restaurants, stores, hotels and other types of buildings.
Robin Jones is director of the Great Lakes region's Disability and Business Technical Assistance Center, which provides information, guidance and training to help businesses obtain voluntary compliance under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Great Lakes center, which is part of the ADA National Network, is one of 10 region centers funded by a division of the U.S. Department of Education.
But Jones said people with disabilities are losing their jobs at faster rates than those without them and are having a harder time regaining employment.
Not adjusted for seasonal changes in employment, the national jobless rate for people with disabilities was about 15.6 percent in May, which was up from 14.7 percent from May 2010. The unemployment rate from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics included people who did not have a job, were available for work, and actively sought employment in the four weeks preceding the survey.
The jobless rate for people without a disability was 8.5 percent in May, which is down from 9.1 percent a year earlier.
"It's a sense of frustration," said Jones, whose office is based in Chicago. "It's a feeling of once again people with disabilities are at the bottom."
Changing with the times
Jones, who is also an instructor at the University of Illinois-Chicago, said in the 2000s, employers started looking for ways to creatively fill positions with non-traditional workers. But with the economic downturn, she said employers may be less willing to hire a candidate that requires an accommodation when there are other candidates that may not need it.
About 27 of people with disabilities between ages 16 and 64 were employed in May compared with nearly 70 percent of people without disabilities, according to federal labor data.
Margo Love-Surprise, placement services director for The Arc Northwest Indiana in Gary, said the economy is making it more difficult to get people with disabilities into jobs that they have traditionally been able to work in such as janitorial and food service and retail. She said the opportunities have dried up and it has been extremely tough for people with developmental disabilities.
"There are some terrific individuals who have talent," Love-Surprise said. "It'd be great if an employer (could) see that talent."
However, Kathie Savich, director of community employment with Opportunity Enterprises, said if the trend of employers on a national level being shy about hiring people with disabilities, it isn't happening in Northwest Indiana. She said the bigger problem is that the economy is keeping the job placement window open longer than when conditions have been better.
Savich said there are still employers that her organization as well as others in the area including The Arc and TradeWinds Services have worked with around Northwest Indiana who can attest to the benefits received from employing people with disabilities.
Savich said hiring people with disabilities is a "win-win" for the employee and employer. She said employers will find that they have loyal employees who are competitive at completing job tasks and the work can benefit employees financially and for self-fulfillment.
Tax credits for hiring people with disabilities may also be available for businesses, Savich said."The folks we serve show you they want to work hard."
Mary Ellen Slazyk, who said she isn't able to work for health reasons, described herself and her husband as survivors. Slazyk, 57, said they've been through periods of unemployment before and he had applied for 76 jobs prior to being hired in at the predecessor of Oshkosh in Chicago's south suburbs.
"It is going to be a bumpy ride for us, but we have traveled this road before," Slazyk said.
Jones said there are companies that know the value in employing people of diverse backgrounds including those with disabilities.
But she said a problem is there aren't good metrics to determine how many companies are hiring people with disabilities. One difficulty businesses have is tracking people whose disabilities may not be immediately visible such as agoraphobia.
"Unless an employer is affirmatively trying to hire someone with disabilities, it's difficult," Jones said. "...It (often) comes down to what's easier and what do they know."
Help on the way
The Conference Board convened a group to earlier this year to study how employment outcomes could be improved for people in the labor force with disabilities. A final report from the research working group of executives and outside experts could be completed in late 2011 or early 2012.
Jones said the Great Lakes ADA Center can offer resources to job seekers over whether personal disabilities should be disclosed in cover letters and job applications.
Resources can be found on the Internet through websites including the Job Accommodation Network including how to request a reasonable accommodation for a disability from a employer. The website also offers information for employers on what types of questions are permissible under the ADA during a pre-employment interview.
Jones said there are federal agencies, local nonprofits and business groups in addition to the ADA Center where job seekers and business could get resources on employment options for people with disabilities.
Love-Surprise of The Arc said local organizations can provide assistance, but offices for the Indiana division of Vocational Rehabiliation Services is a one-stop resource to help people with disabilities prepare for or find employment.
Local employment assistance agencies for people with disabilities including those who are veterans work to ensure they are matched with work opportunities that they can complete, said Love-Surprise.
"We're not into pushing square pegs into round holes," she said.
Even with the amount of resources that are available for employers, Jones said there are still misconceptions about hiring people with disabilities among hiring managers. She said hiring managers may be worried about not being able to terminate an employee employment relationship if the doesn't work.
Love-Surprise of The Arc said she finds employers continue to worry about paying for expensive accommodations for employees and liability concerns if a person with a disability suffered an injury at work.
She said most accommodations an employee may need costs less than $1,000, with many items costing less than $10.
Slazyk said her hope is that her husband will be able to find work based on his manufacturing experience, which includes reading blueprints. And she hopes he'll have better luck this time around. The last three jobs he's had, he lost when the plants closed.
Savich of Opportunity Enterprises said one of the most important things to remember on a job search is perseverance, despite the roadblocks people may face.
"And I say yes, you can," Savich said about her advice to clients during the job search process. "We're going to figure this out."
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Work search tips ;
Robin Jones, project director for the Great Lakes ADA Center, has recommendations for people with disabilities who are searching for jobs
- Perservere through the job search although it may be difficult to find work
- Maintain and grow a personal network because that is where the lion's share of people find employment
- If a job seeker has a visible disability, he has to be prepared to talk about what he can do beyond his limitations
- It isn't required to list a disability on a resume or cover letter, but be ready to address it in an interview, especially an accomodation from an employer is required.
- Find local, state or federal agencies or groups to support a job search
For more information about job search assistance and resources available locally for people with disabilities, contact local offices of the Indiana division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Gary offices, east and west
110 W. Ridge Rd.
(219) 981-5326
Valparaiso office
954 Eastport Centre, Suite C
(219) 462-0521
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