Sorry for the wait! It’s been a long time. How have you been? It’s about time we did a proper episode on this. In this episode, we talk about disability employment. Consider this: People with disabilities are among the highest unemployed groups in the United States. We discuss this, and working in the disability field. Enjoy!
We genuinely appreciate your patience and we’re happy to finally be back on a normal schedule.
What’s so important about disability employment?
If you aren’t someone with a disability, probably not too much. But if you are, employment is likely something you’ve thought about since you were old enough to work. People with disabilities are among the highest unemployed groups in the United States. We are more than three times more likely to be unemployed than able-bodied people overall.
Why is that? There are lots of reasons, but we focus on these two:
- Employers tend not to hire us because they see us as potential liabilities and grounds for a lawsuit.
- Employers believe that accommodating an employer with a disability costs a huge amount of money.
The first reason is one that theoretically could be true, but in practice it isn’t. In reality, people with disabilities are happy to have jobs at all. Yes, we can sue for almost anything under the ADA, but it’s usually not worth the trouble.
The second reason is completely false. According to a study by JAN and ODEP:
The employers in the study reported that a high percentage (59%) of accommodations cost absolutely nothing to make, while the rest typically cost only $500.
While disability employment might not seem like a huge issue, it is. We didn’t even get a chance to discuss something as horrible as sheltered workshops, for example, but that’s for a different episode on a different day.
Notes from this episode: Persons with a Disability: Labor Force Characteristics Summary, Accommodation and Compliance Series Workplace Accommodations: Low Cost, High Impact
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