This document summarizes a workshop on strategies for disability inclusiveness in the workplace. The workshop covered trends in disability and the workforce, barriers to hiring and inclusion, and best practices from companies implementing inclusive strategies. Attendees participated in activities to explore scenarios around hiring, accommodations, and partnership opportunities. The goal was to provide tools and strategies for organizations to engage more inclusively with people of all abilities.

1. Welcome! Discovering Untapped Talent: Strategies for Disability Inclusiveness May 7, 2009 Hannah Rudstam, Ph.D. Disability & business Technical Assistance Center, Cornell University Sherrill Curtiss, Work Force Readiness Director, Garden State Council-SHRM Pamela Scarpa, Diversity Director, Garden State Council--SHRM Joe Zesski, Resources for Independent Living, Burlington, NJ Supported by a grant from the Kessler Foundation Employment and Disability Institute www.edi.cornell.edu

2. Guess that person… Try to guess the name of the person your partner’s card Ask your partner any yes/no question that would help you guess the name of the person on their card (without mentioning the name) As soon as you’ve guessed your person, raise your hand

3. The face of disability is our face. People with disabilities are in all walks of life, in all professions, and in all ages. It’s about people, not pity. It’s about ability, not disability. Often, the biggest barrier is not the disability, but the attitudes of others. See the person, not the disability

4. Many people participated in making this event possible… Henry H. Kessler Foundation Garden State Council of the Society for Human Resource Management New Jersey Independent Living Centers New Jersey Business Leadership Network

5. Goals for today… Introduction: Why this? Why now? A look at business and disability trends Module 1: Individual Level--Interactions & expectations in the workplace Scenarios around hiring and reasonable accommodation Module 2: Organizational Level—Business strategies for disability inclusiveness Module 3: Outside the Organization—Building partnerships & collaborations

6. Why this? Why now? How have we viewed people with disabilities in the workplace?

7. The “Tiny Tim” Stage

8. The “Hire the Handicapped” Stage

9. Legal Compliance Stage The Americans With Disabilities Act

10. Beyond Legal Compliance-- Disability as a difference, not a deficit

11. The journey beyond legal compliance “ Are There Wheelchairs in Heaven?” Ben Maittlin, NPR Morning Edition, Dec. 7, 2005 http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5042181

13. Legal compliance alone does not link to competitive advantage or success About links… Disability inclusiveness does!

14. Link #1 Disability inclusiveness enhances your organization’s access to talent. Can your organization afford to ignore 20% of your available talent?

15. Link #2 Disability inclusive workplace practices will be a key strategy for preparing for the workforce of the near future, when talent will become harder to find. (Even with the current economic downturn.)

16. In the near future… Upcoming workforce trends* About one-third of the U.S. workforce will start to retire in the next five years By 2012, it is projected that there will be significantly more jobs than people. This trend will intensify until 2030. People are changing jobs more frequently It will be very difficult to find talent in several sectors *Sources: Dychtawald, K., Erickson, T. & Morison, R. (2006) Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent. (Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Herman, R. & Olivo, T. & Gioia, J. (2000) Impending Crisis: Too Many Jobs; Too Few People (NY, NY: Harper).

17. In the near future… A greater portion of our workforce will be working with a disability. Enhanced ability to diagnose disabilities earlier Better treatments mean more people can work with disabilities Improved assistive technology means the disability can be effectively accommodating in the workplace Our population is aging

18. Source: U.S. Census Bureau Report on Americans with Disabilities: 1994-95, P70-61 (August 1997) Based on Survey of Income and Program Participation, Oct. 1994-Jan. 1995 Disability As a Function of Age

19. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

20. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

21. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

22. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

23. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

24. © 2001 Trace R&D Center, University of Wisconsin

25. Link # 3 A disability inclusive workforce sends the right message to your customers. And it’s not just about “looking good.” This links to business/organizational success!

26. Consider this study*: A University of Massachusetts & Harris Poll study found that 93% of customers surveyed said they would PREFER to patronize a business that has people with disabilities in their workforce. *Gary N. Sipersteina, Neil Romanob, and Amanda Mohlera, and Robin Parker. A national survey of consumer attitudes towards companies that hire people with disabilities . Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation 22 (2005) 1-7 IOS

27. Link # 4 People with disabilities perform as well as any other employee.

28. A study of 314 workplaces* Employees with disabilities: Had the same job performance ratings as employees without disabilities Did not require any more of supervisor’s time Were no more likely to be absent, late or have off-work time than any other employee Did not have more workplace accidents Were less likely to leave the job * DePaul University and Disability Works. Exploring the Bottom Line: A Study of the Costs and Benefits of Workers with Disabilities. Released January 28, 2007. Accessed March 31, 2008 at http://www.disabilityworks.org/downloads/disabilityworksDePaulStudyComprehensiveResults.doc

29. Link # 5 Reasonable accommodation– it’s not just about the law. It’s about a key strategy to retain your talent.

30. Direct Benefits 87%--Accommodation enabled us to retain a valued employee 74%-- Increased employee’s productivity 55%--Increased employee’s attendance 54%--Saved worker’s comp costs Indirect Benefits 69% Improved interactions with co-workers 61% Increased overall company morale 57%--Improved interactions with customers 42%--Improved workplace safety 41%--Increased overall company attendance A new study from the Job Accommodation Network… *Source: Job Accommodation Network (2007) Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact . U. S. Department of Labor. Accessed May 3, 2008 at www.jan.wvu.edu/media/LowCostHighImpact.pdf

31. Turnover costs—the impact on the business Search costs Up-front hiring costs Separation costs New employee Services Lost productivity Lost organizational knowledge Lost customers, contacts,clients,stakeholders Lost goodwill The Saratoga Institute estimates that it costs about 100% of annual salary to replace a lost employee.

32. Link # 6 Reasonable accommodation– it’s not just about the law. It’s an excellent return on investment.

33. Various studies have found that reasonable accommodations cost much less than employers expect. A Job Accommodation Study* found: 49% of reasonable accommodations cost nothing 78% cost less than $500 *McNaughton, Tamie and Beth Loy. Workplace Accommodations: A Small Investment for a Large Return. A paper presented at the Job Accommodation Webcast June 12, 23007. Accessed March 31, 2008 at http://www.jan.wvu.edu/Teleconf/Events/2007/6-12-07_Handouts/WorkplaceAccomm.ppt#295,17, Workplace Accommodation: A Small Investment Yields Large Returns

34. Link # 7 It’s not just about being able to engage people with obvious disabilities, it’s also about non-obvious disabilities.

35. Will your organization know how to engage people with hidden disabilities? 3 – 5% of your current and potential talent will have ADD/ADHD* Nearly 10% of your current and potential talent will have a learning disability** About 1 in 5 adults has a diagnosable psychiatric disability in any given year* Depression is now the second leading cause of off-work time from the American workplace** *Low, Keith. Prevalence of ADBH: What are the Numbers? U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Dec 27, 2007. **Maja Altarac, MD, PhD and Ekta Saroha, MA. Lifetime Prevalence of Learning Disability. PEDIATRICS Vol. 119 Supplement February 2007, pp. S77-S83.

36. OK…Let’s talk Breakout Activity #1: Disability inclusiveness workplace interactions: Hiring Reasonable Accommodation

37. Breakout Activity #1: Directions: Count off—by 8 Get an envelope with directions Breakout group 30 min Large group debrief 20 min

38. Breakout Activity #1: Person with a disability: “ Jamie” or “Jodie” The Employer: “HR Director” or “Hiring manager” Observer Observer Observer

39. Breakout Activity #1: Directions: In your envelope… “ Quick Facts” Sheet –one for everyone Directions for “Jodie” or Jamie” Directions for person playing Hiring Manager or HR Director Observers’ Worksheets

40. Breakout Activity #1: Back in the large group: Observers: Highlights from the conversation Any surprises? All: For hiring scenarios: Would this person have been hired in real life? For RA scenarios: What was the result of the conversation? Would this RA have worked in real life?

41. Time for a break!

42. Module 2: Expanding Options—Exploring Disability Inclusive Strategies

43. It’s about tying the rope together

44. What are the best practices of other companies? Ten disability inclusiveness strategies…

45. Strategy 1 Establish resource or affinity groups

46. Strategy 2 Have a look at your diversity plan

47. Strategy 3 Managers & supervisors… Key players in translating any business strategy, including disability inclusiveness

48. Strategy 4 Employees with disabilities: Including a disability perspective in your product/service design

49. Strategy 5 How well are you doing? Consider “mystery shoppers”

50. Strategy 6 Spread the business case for disability inclusiveness throughout the organization

51. Strategy 7 Create mentoring & internship programs for students with disabilities

52. Strategy 8 Create a centralized resource for reasonable accommodations

53. Strategy 9 Select a partner: Disability service providers

54. Strategy 10 The New Jersey Business Leadership Network Visit www.njbln.org

55. OK…Let’s talk Module 2 Activity: Taking disability inclusiveness strategies for a test run Count off by 8 Each small group gets a flipchart page with a scenario As a group, work through the scenario for about 20 minutes (Using either markers or stickies) Return to large group for debrief

56. OK…Let’s talk Large group debrief What strategy did you adopt? What might be a first step? What partners might you need?

57. Module 3: Outside the Organization—Building partnerships & collaborations What’s one thing you’ll do after leaving this workshop? What are some possible partnerships to help you accomplishing this in your business/organization?

58. Informational interviews: “ Informational Interview” one disability service provider “ Informational interview” one employer

59. Getting HRCI Credits for this workshop Use code:

60. Getting HRCI Credits for this workshop Use code:

61. Getting HRCI Credits for this workshop Use code: ORG-PROGRAM-48673