Life on Wheels (103 page)

Formerly The President’s Committee on Employment of the Physically Handicapped and formed by President John Kennedy in the early 1960s, the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP; www.dol.gov/odep) in the US Department of Labor assists the business community in hiring people with disabilities. Each year a conference is held that attracts people around the country, from both government and the private sector. Seminars and lectures at the conference help corporate executives, human resources specialists, disability advocates, union representatives, and other interested parties in promoting employment of people with disabilities.

ODEP helps employers assess whether someone is capable of performing a job. Job-analysis materials help the employer determine employment issues such as:

What functions are essential to the job

What physical tasks—climbing, kneeling, lifting, carrying, and so on— are necessary

How the job would be altered if certain physical requirements were removed or changed

What movements through the office or field site are necessary

What social conditions and interaction with colleagues are required

What general skills are necessary for the job

How previous experience might be substituted for lack of specific training or education

What equipment, spatial arrangement, or job redesign measures can accommodate a person’s ability to perform the job

ODEP is active on the political front. In March 1998, President Clinton established a task force the mission of which is to bring levels of employment for people with disabilities up to par with the general population.

Also a service of the United States Department of Labor, the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) provides information to employees and employers to support the hiring and accommodation of workers with disabilities. An employer can call 800.526.7234 to take advantage of an immense array of resources, including:

Information on adapting a job for a person with a disability

Information on accommodating an employee with minimal expense

Support for mobility, sensory, and neurologic disabilities

Access to a large library of material about strategies and products