Show : ) The Christian Science Monitor ' ' The Herald Journal Logan Utah Sunday October 5 2003 — A19 claim under the ADA says Caroline Jacobs a lawyer for the UPS employees from Dis-- i ability Rights Advocates in Oakland Calif The plaintiffs claimed they were not given written materiinterals or preters during important -training sessions and that in some cases they were discour--' aged from seeking promotions UPS did not admit to any discrimination in the but a mechanism is r being set up to monitor poli- ' cies it put in place after the lawsuit was filed These are intended to improve what the company considers a strong record in recruiting and at least oue person with a dis--' ability Only 11 percent use advertising and recruiting methods specifically targeting : Like so many aspiring chefs Betty-J- o Wilt started off humbly in the restaurant busi- - These applicants But a nexus of government ness — by scrubbing pots she Five days a week agencies nonprofits and lead- gets' ipg-edtakes two at 5:30 am employers are innoup trains to the Citizens Bank vating to close the gap In October National Disability processing center in Medford Mass and dons her white Employment Awareness Month they will be particth- jacket and hat at the employee cafeteria larly busy spreading the mes--: In her relationship with her1 sage that companies’ efforts to welcome and accommodate bosses she places a high premium on honesty employees with disabilities - are rewarded by the drills and “I won’t lie to them and loyalty these employees bring they won’t lie to me so it’s to the job cool They treat me like the “It’s good business to hire normal person I want to feel ' and like” says Ms Wilt who has people with disabilities more leading companies real- a mild form of mental retardaize that and are reaching out” tion A few years ago Wilt parsays Roy Grizzard an assistant secretary in the Depart- ticipated in a pilot school-to- ment of Labor who’s in charge career program through of the Office of Disability Inc a Triangle nonprofit Employment Policy (ODEP) agency in the bordering town in Washington of Maiden Triangle provides services to about 600 disabled Employers sometimes worry that making adjustpeople each year always ments for a disabled worker emphasizing its motto “Peowill be costly but businesses curricuwith The ple Ability lum for the six students in the surveyed by ODEP say that 69 Citizens Bank program percent of their accommodations cost less than $500 only included everything from ser3 percent exceed $5000 A ATM machines to vicing saw operator with a learning dressing appropriately for work and Wilt was one of two disability for instance simply needed a $5 card that graduates hired full time by the bank explained how to measure fractions of an inch And a lab Senior executives at Citizens Bank have been so happy researcher who couldn’t bend his neck fully after an injury with the results that they hope was able to adapt his microto establish similar partnerEast Coast the scope for $2400 The compa- ships along nies reported a $29 return for And that level of commitment generated by managers every $1 spent on accommodations who have firsthand experience with disabled employees is One bank’s push what’s needed to break down SuoTnist Bank barriers between employers has worked hard in and the disabled advocates the past few years to earn its and business leaders say More than a decade since reputation as a disability-friendl- y the Americans with Disabili- employer says vice Katherine McCary ties Act (ADA) established president ' employes’ obligations to treat director of its Accessing Com- -' disabled people fairly munity Talent programThe Richmond Va bank recruits progress remains slow In the United States 22 million peo- through vocational-rehabilittion agencies It encourages 16 74 have work a to pie ages the temporary staffing firm disability the Census Bureau Manpower to send people reports Only 21 percent of v with disabilities to the bank as them are employed compared with 72 percent of people with" temps some of whom have no work disability- bridged into permanent Not everyone wants to work ’ employment The company also recently asked a local or feels capable of it but 67 university to develop a dis- -' percent of unemployed disWeb course abled people say they’d prefer to train supervisors and other to have jobs according to Work Trends a study pubemployees lished this spring by the John : ' “More people are coming to us for employment that we J Heldrich Center for Work- don’t think would have come force Development at Rutgers to us five years ago” Ms University in New Jersey Of those who are working 40 McCary says “For some peo- pie with disabilities it can be percent say the jobs don’t ' pretty daunting to come to a require them to fully use their abilities large employer so the more we go out and talk in the comOn the employer side 26 munity the more people say percent of companies employ sign-langua- ge ge nt accommodating employees with disabilities AP photo Ellsworth David Inc to tie Gueierro and belt how a teaches coach Jean package Triangle job hanger The Malden Mass nonprofit organization has a long history of helping people with disabilities to find I! jobs ‘Yes I could envision myself working at a bank’” McCary is also chairwoman of the national Business Lead- ership Network a coalition of employers who see hiring people with disabilities as an important part of their diversity goals and business 'strate- gies She sees strong momentum among companies of all sizes partly because with high turnover and job vacancies in certain industries “they’re looking for any con- ' rights to people with disabili- ties was a sort of “afterthought” to the activism of the 1960s Mr Cortez says In 1973 the Rehabilitation Act prohibited discrimination against people with disabili- ties in workplaces that received federal funding But it wasn’t until the employ- por- tion of the ADA went into effect in 1992 that the message went out to all employers ‘ cept they haven’t tried before” ability-awarene- ss Barriers remain ebrate yet “We’ve not seen the kind of progress We’d like in the area of recruiting” says Edmund Cortez president and CEO of the National Center for Dis-ability Services in Albertson NY “A few years ago when - there were complaints about a future shortage of workers there should have been a surge of employers coming to our er hearing-impaire- d employees settled a class action lawsuit against UPS for nearly $10 million It is thought to be the largest monetary settlement for an employment-discriminatio- “Accommodation is the and we see people easy part with disabilities out in public life and work life more than ever before but attitudes are still a problem — the low expectations of people with disabilities” says Patricia Murphy director of the Disabilities Studies Program at the University of Toledo in Ohio Pity and condescension means “we don't think of them as workers as someone who may compete with us for a job” she says ' n See HIRE on A20 horntonWilder's timeless masterpieceabout meand the universe Others say it's not time to cel- And interpretations of the law are still being sorted out “If the employer and the worker can work out a solution that’s the best” Cortez says If not the courts continue to give the law teeth This sum---m- Beyond the basics The dispute over promotion opportunities speaks to the challenges that can remain in workplaces even after basic adjustments are made aiil Newman stars In thiTacclafmed Mid-Atlan- tic a- ’ ' WEmi - University of Utah disability-employmeorga- nizations but there wasn’t “One company was using prison inmates to produce their product and I wondered why haven’t they come to us? 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