Creating Job Opportunities for People with Disabilities / What Questions Can Employers Ask

Creating Job Opportunities for People with Disabilities

By Guest Blogger Judy Owen, COO and Co-founder of Opportunity Works, Inc
as posted at Disability.Blog : Jan 29, 2013

“It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” I remember a friend telling me this when I was in college and worried that I would never get a job after graduating. This advice was music to my ears since I was perhaps not the most stellar student, but I was always good at making friends. I am one of those people who will happily walk into a room with 100 people I don’t know and walk out with 100 new friends. This served me well in my first career in information technology, a field full of people not known for their interpersonal skills.

And then my son, who is now eight years old, was born. He has Down syndrome, and this launched me into a life of advocating for people with disabilities.

I’ve been fortunate to have some unique opportunities. In 2007, I was appointed to the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, by then Governor Charlie Crist. While serving with the Council, I was asked to be on the employment task force. This ultimately led to me starting my own staffing company Opportunity Works, Inc., about a year and a half ago. Opportunity Works is a full-service staffing company based in St. Petersburg, Florida that focuses on recruiting and placing people with disabilities.

The idea for the company began during my work advocating on employment issues for people with disabilities. During this time, there were two things that kept resonating with me: that advice from my friend in college, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” and that job coaches for people with disabilities, in addition to the many other things they are responsible for doing, were expected to build relationships with business executives in order to find job placements for their clients.

Job coaches are supposed to build relationships with corporations in their community, that’s true. They are also expected to help the people they serve with on-the-job training and assistance finding transportation or other support needs, and fill out copious amounts of paperwork so that they can be reimbursed by whichever state agency is paying them to provide these services. From what I saw in Florida, the demands put on job coaches were just too high, and the model they were using was simply not working. So I began asking myself how I could help job coaches build business relationships.

The other part of the problem was that people with disabilities tend to have smaller networks than their peers without disabilities. It is a huge issue. That is why schools build inclusion programs like Circle of Friends and Peer Buddy Programs to help students with disabilities broaden their networks. Simply telling people with disabilities to go out and build networks in order to find jobs was not enough to overcome this. That would be like someone telling me to walk into a crowded room and say nothing to anyone for an hour and then leave. Impossible!

So, how could I help people with disabilities overcome their limited networks? The idea hit me – by bringing them into mine, of course! Since moving back to Florida, I had built up a pretty broad network of childhood and college friends, community leaders and business colleagues, with a personal connection for just about anything I might need.

I thought I could also bring the job coaches into my networks to help them build business relationships. This solution had its own problem, though. At the time, I was the Computer Systems Manager for the City of St. Petersburg and was not actively developing business relationships. So, I started looking around me.

I realized that the staffing industry was growing, and that temporary-to-permanent job assignments are a fantastic way for employers who may not have had experience with employees with disabilities to get to know them and see if they fit their hiring needs. These assignments allow employers to see how someone performs on the job without a long-term commitment or fear that they might have to let the person go if he or she is not working out. Temporary assignments are also a great way for job candidates to fill gaps in employment.

Yet, after extensive research, I could not find a staffing company in the area that built a business model around actively recruiting people with disabilities. I also could not find disability service providers who routinely built relationships with staffing companies to help find placements for the many people they serve.

That is why I began Opportunity Works. My company takes a capitalistic approach to solving a social problem, meaning we will only make money if we can prove to our customers that we add value to their organization. If we can’t prove our vision, we will not succeed as a company. I have bet my livelihood that this model can change employment outcomes for people with disabilities on a large scale.

Our agency has put people to work on temporary assignments, as well as temp-to-perm and direct-hire placements. The goal is for us to actually affect the employment rate nationally. On a smaller scale, the goal is for me to have the dream that all loving parents have for their children: to nurture and educate my son so that he too will one day have financial independence.

I am lucky enough to blog about my start-up adventure on the Forbes website. If you would like to follow our progress, please check it out at http://blogs.forbes.com/judyowen.

Judy Owen combines her professional and personal experience to deliver on Opportunity Works’ mission of creating a bridge between employers and people with disabilities. For more than a decade, Judy has been a leader in mentoring programs, recognizing that the key to success is both pairing suited individuals and also empowering all involved to succeed. When Judy’s son, Zachary, was born with Down syndrome, she became deeply involved in advocacy on disability issues. Since 2007, she has served on the Board of Directors of PARC, the largest social services agency in the Tampa Bay area. She was appointed by Governor Crist to serve as a member of the Florida Developmental Disabilities Council in 2007 and two years later was appointed by the Florida Education Commissioner to the Florida State Advisory Committee for the Education of Exceptional Students. A frequent public speaker and avid outdoor enthusiast, Judy lives with her husband and two children in St. Petersburg, Florida.
http://usodep.blogs.govdelivery.com/2013/01/29/creating-job-opportunities-for-people-with-disabilities/

###

Career Connection Series: What Questions Are Illegal for Employers to Ask During Job Interviews?

By Guest Blogger Paula Reuben Vieillet, President of Employment Options Inc.
As posted at Disability.Blog : Feb 1, 2013

Keeping New Year’s Resolutions is challenging for most, but if you are a person with a disability and your resolution was to “get a job,” this can be especially challenging.

Even though the civil rights protection covered by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other employment-related laws have been around for decades, many job hunters with disabilities still do not understand how this law impacts them in their job search.

Did you know that it is illegal for employers to discriminate because of a person’s race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age or disability when hiring? Here are some examples of illegal questions you may be asked during an interview that could be used to discriminate against hiring you.

What is your race?
What is your age?
Are you married?
What is your religious background?
Do you have any children?
Do you have a back injury?
Have you ever been on Workers’ Compensation?
Are you disabled/do you have a disability?
Do you take any medications?
How many sick days did you take last year?
How long have you had your disability?

Employers may not ask you questions about your disability, only your abilities!

BUT, not all employers know the law or follow the law. So, if a potential employer “accidentally” asks an illegal question in a job interview, one of the best ways to protect yourself against discrimination is to always to address the concern, not the question!

r example, what if a potential employer asks you how old you are in a job interview? Prevailing negative stereotypes about older workers may include: they are too old to learn new information, are slower to learn new things, do not have many work years remaining or that they are frequently ill.

In your response, stand up for your rights and address the concerns, not the question! Try saying things like, “I am hoping to work for my next company for at least ten years,” “I am sure my excellent work experience and years of dependability will be an asset to your company” or “I am open to learning new information.”

Disability-related questions in an interview may reflect concerns or negative stereotypes regarding hiring people with disabilities, such as their being too difficult or costly to accommodate, driving up health insurance costs, re-injuring themselves on the job, being frequently absent due to their disability or being a danger to themselves or others.

Again, try addressing an interviewer’s concerns, not his or her questions. Your responses may sound something like this: “I understand that you might have concerns, but I had a great attendance record at my past job,” “I might need a little help with __. Would that be a problem?” or “I am able to perform all of the essential duties of this job.” Another approach to try is, “I have had this disability my whole life and I have held many jobs. I am excellent at finding ways to work around my disability, and this makes me a more creative thinker and problem solver.”

Throughout history, different populations have had to fight for their right to live equally and to have equal opportunities. Slowly, through individual and group efforts, people are becoming free to live without fear, practice their religions, vote, travel and work without imposed barriers due to race, sex, nationality, sexual preference, age or physical and mental abilities.

Next time you are asked an illegal question, be prepared and address the concerns! It is important that you stand up for your rights as a person with many different abilities and assets. Discrimination laws can take many years and much individual effort before they are truly accepted. If getting a job is on your list of resolutions, do not let discrimination get in the way!

For More Information:

Read the “Guide for People with Disabilities Seeking Employment”.
If you feel you have been discriminated against and would like to file an employment discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, visit http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/howtofile.cfm.

For answers to questions about employment-related protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act, call the Department of Justice ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (800-514-0383 TTY). ADA specialists are available Monday- Friday from 9:30 AM-5:30 PM Eastern, except on Thursday when the hours are 12:30 – 5:30 PM.

For More Information about My Employment Options:

Visit the company’s website at www.MyEmploymentOptions.com or our Facebook page

For answers to any questions about the company, email Lori Adler at ladler@myemploymentoptions.co

Paula Reuben Vieillet is President and Founder of Employment Options Inc., a certified Social Security Administration Employment Network in the Ticket to Work Program. She is a frequent consultant to the Social Security Administration on the Ticket to Work program and is on the Board of Directors of the National Employment Network Association. Her company assists Ticket to Work participants in 48 states and has a loyal following of employers who consistently hold job openings for her clients because they have been so well-screened for each job description.

*This article contains excerpts from Employment Options: The Ultimate Resource for Job Seekers with Disabilities and Other Challenges, a culmination of Mrs. Vieillet’s 20 years of experience as a Licensed Rehabilitation Counselor.

http://usodep.blogs.govdelivery.com/2013/02/01/career-connection-series-what-questions-are-illegal-for-employers-to-ask-during-job-interviews/