Hiring workers with disabilities
Better ways to locate, hire and retain people with disabilities
While many JanSan companies want to hire people with disabilities, some are likely not sure where to find qualified candidates. Jennifer Sheehy, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the US Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), says the key to recruiting is developing relationships with a wide variety of sources.
Examples from the ODEP of best practices for disability-inclusive outreach and recruitment include:
Partnering with state and local service providers, such as vocational rehabilitation agencies, American Job Centers, Centers for Independent Living and other community-based organizations
Ensure that mentoring and internship opportunities are included.
Attending career fairs for people with disabilities and/or posting vacancies on targeted job boards
Participating in employer networking groups (such as Disability:IN Which is the leading nonprofit resource for business disability inclusion worldwide)
Most companies already hire people with disabilities on staff, however, they should review their policies and processes. Examples of best practices related to disability-inclusive talent acquisition and retention include:
Ensuring representation of existing employees with disabilities in the onboarding process, such as, presentations and welcome committees
Maintaining employee assistance programs (EAPs) and disability management and prevention (stay-at-work/ return-to-work) programs.
Adopting a promotion policy including disability among positive selection factors
To Include notices about professional development opportunities and accommodations.
Source: CMM Online, U.S. Department of Labor, Disability:IN, Ask Earn, CareerOneStop, Independent Living Research Utilization Home