1. Introduction
2. Barriers and Efforts To Date
3. Actions and Recommendations
   1. Improve and Increase Access to, and Choice and Customization of, Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities, Supports and Services for People with Disabilities, Particularly Those with Significant Disabilities
      Action #1 -- Increase access to mainstream employment systems and increase coordination and leveraging of resources among federal, state and local levels
      Action #2 -- Increase employment choices and earnings opportunities by expanding capacity for individually designed customized employment
      Action #3 -- Increase successful transitions to employment and post-secondary activities for young people with disabilities
      Action #4 -- Increase employment, entrepreneurial and small business opportunities for people with disabilities
      Action #5 -- Increase One-Stop Center employment services for people with psychiatric disabilities

   2. Increase the Availability and Quality of Personal Assistants and Community Workers, Preventing Unnecessary Institutionalization of People Who Need Assistance with Activities of Daily Living and Providing Supports Needed to Seek and Maintain Employment

   3. Leverage Technology Resources for People with Disabilities, Including Increasing the Use of Technology as a Tool for Employment Information and Outreach, Facilitating and Increasing Telework Opportunities, and Increasing Employment Opportunities in Technology-Related Industries

   4. Increase Innovative and Strategic Partnerships Between the Federal Government and Employers, People with Disabilities, Family Members, Providers, Community Organizations, and Others in the Private Sector, including Foundations and Faith-Based Organizations
      Action #1 -- Promote positive images of people with disabilities as workers and community participants through a multi-part awareness campaign
      Action #2 -- Encourage partnerships with employers, members of the disability community, families, providers, foundations, faith-based organizations and other important partners
      Action #3 -- Increase participation of community organizations in providing customized employment services and opportunities to individuals with disabilities, and encourage their role in partnerships with other providers at the local level

   5. Increase the Number of People with Disabilities Working in the Federal Workforce, with DOL Leading by Example Through its Commitment to Hiring People with Disabilities.

4. Appendices
   Appendix 1: Summary of Proposed Department of Labor Actions
   Appendix 2: Summary of Cross-Departmental Recommendations
   Appendix 3: Department of Labor Agency Reports and Self Evaluations
   Appendix 3-A: Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB)
   Appendix 3-B: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
   Appendix 3-C: Employment Standards Administration (ESA)
   Appendix 3-D: Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
   Appendix 3-E: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM)
   Appendix 3-F: Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO)
   Appendix 3-G: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (ASP)
   Appendix 3-H: Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP)
   Appendix 3-I: Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration (PWBA)
   Appendix 3-J: Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS)
   Appendix 3-K: Women's Bureau (WB)

People with disabilities can work when they have access to accommodations and individualized assistance -- yet, as the President's New Freedom Initiative recognizes, almost 70% of adults with disabilities are unemployed. The unemployment rate is even higher for people with the most significant disabilities, who have traditionally been relegated to non-work or residential placements. Many are still in nursing homes or other institutions, and thousands are on waiting lists for services or in day activity programs and other isolated or segregated environments.

Decades of research, demonstration projects, and other public and private activities, are challenging and changing the stereotypes that the only options for individuals with significant disabilities are segregated or non-work status. There are many successful and promising strategies for securing integrated, competitive employment: supported employment and entrepreneurship; individualized job development; job "carving" and restructuring; use of personal agents; micro-boards, micro-enterprises, cooperatives and small businesses; and personal budgets and individualized funding which promote self-determination and allow for more choice and control. These approaches, particularly when combined with assistive technology and consumer-directed personal assistance services, are increasing the employment rate of people with disabilities.

Without the economic and social benefits of employment, people with disabilities are forced into poverty and social isolation. Barriers created and sustained by outdated federal policies, lack of information, and the continued persistence of erroneous stereotypes, have made the quest for meaningful employment unobtainable for the overwhelming majority of adults with disabilities. In fact, the National Organization on Disability, following a national survey of adults with disabilities, concluded that not working is perhaps the truest definition of what it means to have a disability.¹

The DOL is charged with preparing the American workforce of the 21^st century for new and better jobs. It is responsible for the administration and enforcement of numerous federal statutes, covering a wide variety of workplace activities for employers and workers. The programs, services, and benefits afforded through DOL are intended for all employers and workers across the nation, including individuals with disabilities. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao is committed to ensuring that DOL's programs and services are available to and accessible by all people with disabilities, including those transitioning to the community, or at risk of institutionalization, segregation or isolation from their communities.

Unfortunately, in spite of multiple efforts to remove these barriers to employment, the unemployment rate for Americans with disabilities has not improved significantly over the last 12 years. In spite of numerous legislative mandates designed to address the barriers, and numerous interagency initiatives intended to facilitate the communication and collaboration needed for programs and services to work effectively and efficiently, people with disabilities remain out of the workforce at staggering levels. People with the most significant disabilities continue to be viewed as unable to contribute and are instead relegated to dependency on government programs and isolated from their communities. This view is pervasive despite multiple innovative demonstrations and model programs documenting that people with significant disabilities can work and can contribute to the fabric of community life.

Our nation's approach to employment for individuals with disabilities has historically been categorical and fragmented. No single entity has had the breadth of knowledge and scope of authority necessary to ensure a coordinated and effective strategy across and within federal agencies. In addition to the DOL, other federal agencies have responsibility for programs and services that affect the employment of people with disabilities. In a 1994 study by the General Accounting Office (GAO), 130 federal programs were identified, spread across 19 federal agencies, with a broad range of services to assist people with disabilities.³ Sixty-nine of these programs specifically targeted people with disabilities and their employment-related needs. The GAO report concluded, however, that these programs do not work together as efficiently as they could to share information and overcome obstacles posed by differing eligibility criteria and uncoordinated service and benefit providers; that many federal agencies did not engage, or engaged very little, in basic information coordination with each other, with state and local agencies, and with the private sector (including the disability community). The barriers created through this fragmentation contribute substantially to the staggering unemployment rate among adults with disabilities.

In response to this situation, the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities (Task Force) was established in 1998 to create a coordinated strategy across the federal government for increasing employment for adults with the full range of disabilities. Chaired by the Secretary of Labor, the Task Force is working across 18 federal departments and agencies to: (1) review policies and practices relating to employment; (2) make recommendations to the President for modifications or changes necessary to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of programs and services; and (3) ensure that program and policy implementation is consistent with the goals of inclusion articulated in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The Task Force has also focused several of its initiatives on increasing employment for people with the most significant disabilities who are transitioning from institutions, nursing homes, and other environments in which they are either not working or are working at less than minimum wage. Based on extensive outreach to and input from multiple stakeholder groups, the Task Force identified specific actions that were needed to meaningfully address and increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities:

• Develop a consistent national policy on integrated employment.
• Increase capacity for choice and individualized budgeting.
• Increase access to technology and employment in technology fields.
• Expand opportunities for small business and entrepreneurship.
• Focus attention on youth transitioning from school to employment or post-secondary opportunities.
• Develop and leverage public/private partnerships.

An important step in addressing these needs was the creation of the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) at DOL. Based on a Task Force recommendation, Congress established and charged this new Office⁴ with ensuring that all DOL agencies work cooperatively to fully address the employment needs and concerns of persons with disabilities. Clearly within this mandate is the goal of working across the DOL to increase employment in community settings for individuals with disabilities through better access to customized employment, training, and other individualized services and supports. ODEP's goal is not to replicate or consolidate service delivery currently provided through other parts of the DOL. Rather, ODEP will coordinate development of policy recommendations, and of the information and technical assistance needed to ensure physical, communication, and programmatic access to all DOL programs. In addition, ODEP will work with agencies to promote meaningful and effective opportunities to participate in these programs for people with disabilities. Moreover, ODEP will work to promote increasing the capacity of, and coordination across, workforce development and related systems to better meet the needs of, and improve outcomes for, youth and adults with disabilities. No other federal department or agency carries the breadth of this charge specifically relating to employment and disability. ODEP will collaborate with the Task Force as we begin implementing these actions.

DOL agencies have undertaken a number of activities over the last five years to begin addressing the need to increase employment for people with disabilities. Of particular note are the Employment Training Administration's (ETA's) access and technology initiatives, as well as the development of very strong regulations by the DOL Civil Rights Center (CRC) implementing Section 188, the nondiscrimination provisions, of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). Additional activities by ETA include the following:

• Implementing the Work Incentive Grant program, a significant vehicle for enhancing One-Stop center service delivery to people with disabilities, developing staff capacity to provide benefits planning and other information critical to successful employment (e.g., health care, transportation, and housing), increasing the availability of accessible technology in One-Stop Centers, conducting outreach to the disability community, and establishing linkages with public and private disability-related organizations.

• Developing technical assistance issuances and tools, including detailed guidance on physical and programmatic access that elaborates upon the Workforce Investment Act's Section 188 nondiscrimination regulations.

• Developing web-based technical assistance on promising practices related to training and employment of people with disabilities, as well as tutorials directed to the One-Stop Center system.

• Issuing a technical assistance guide on hidden disabilities, as related to individuals who receive Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) benefits and/or participate in Welfare-to-Work programs.

• Developing cross-agency initiatives on Native American issues and inclusion of young people with disabilities.

A more detailed discussion of ongoing activities is included in the appendices, and the reader is strongly encouraged to review these for a better understanding of the breadth of DOL activities related to increasing the employment of people with disabilities.

Notwithstanding these past efforts, many additional actions are needed to address barriers to employment for people with disabilities generally, and specifically for people with disabilities transitioning from institutions, nursing homes, or other segregated environments to the community. It is obvious that dramatic and sustained change must occur for these individuals to be integrated throughout our workforce as valued and equal participants. The structures and practices of our existing public systems have taken decades to evolve, and their ways of doing business have become familiar and comfortable. Altering these structures in a substantive way will be a difficult and long-term project. Success will require a continuing mandate for change to prevent the patterns and practices of the past from persisting.

The DOL is committed to the actions and recommendations contained in this Report. Recognizing that bold and innovative initiatives are vital to changing negative attitudes, providing appropriate customized training and employment services, building a work environment that truly opens the door of opportunity to all people and, in particular, moving Americans with significant disabilities from spectators to participants in the world of work, Secretary Chao has directed each DOL agency to aggressively implement the policies and programs contained in this response to President Bush's Executive Order.

• Improving and increasing access to, and choice and customization of, employment and entrepreneurship opportunities, supports, and services for people with disabilities, particularly those with significant disabilities.

• Increasing the availability and quality of personal assistants and community workers, thereby preventing unnecessary institutionalization of people with disabilities who need assistance with activities of daily living, and providing supports necessary for those individuals to seek and maintain employment.

• Leveraging technology resources for people with disabilities, including increasing the use of technology as a tool for employment information and outreach, facilitating and increasing telework opportunities, and increasing employment opportunities in technology-related industries

• Increasing innovative and strategic partnerships between the federal government and employers, people with disabilities, family members, providers, community organizations, and others in the private sector, including foundations and faith-based organizations

• Increasing the numbers of people with disabilities working in the federal workforce, with the Department of Labor leading by example through its commitment to hiring people with disabilities.

This chapter details DOL action steps and recommendations for each of these areas.

1. Improve and Increase Access to, and Choice and Customization of, Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities, Supports, and Services for People with Disabilities, Particularly Those with Significant Disabilities.

   There is a critical need to build the capacity of the generic workforce development system to provide meaningful opportunities to people with disabilities, including people with significant disabilities and high support needs, who are transitioning to the community from institutional settings or at risk of segregation. These services, while intended for all people, have not always been inclusive of or welcoming to people with disabilities. Furthermore, because people with disabilities have not been a part of the workforce system, there has been little conceptual framework on the part of those working within that system on how to provide effective services. The result is multiple access issues for people with disabilities, relating to physical accessibility, customer relations, knowledge about promising practices, provision of accommodations, and effective strategies and services.

   A key element of any effective overall strategy creating meaningful employment options for people with disabilities is the implementation of choice-based strategies. This approach shifts the balance of power between individuals with disabilities and the entities and agencies assisting them. By treating a person with a disability as a "customer" rather than a "client," systems and programs must consider that individual's choice of providers, services, and supports. The movement for increased choice in employment has recently begun to join forces with the broader self-determination movement within the disability field to suggest that individuals be given control of the public resources set aside for services through personal budgets and other forms of control and self-direction.⁵ Such choice-based approaches can be particularly effective for people with significant disabilities who have been marginalized and often thought to be incapable of work, allowing them to move beyond attitudinal roadblocks and systemic barriers that have forced them into dependency on federal benefit programs.

   There is also an urgent need to increase the availability of customized employment to assist people with disabilities in accomplishing their desire for work. Customized employment is based on personalized determinations of the strengths, needs, and interests of individuals with disabilities, and is also designed to meet the specific needs of employers. It can include employment opportunities developed through job carving, self-employment or entrepreneurial initiatives, or other job development or restructuring strategies. Customization assumes the provision of reasonable accommodations and supports necessary for the individual to perform the functions of a job that is individually negotiated and developed, sometimes through the use of personal agents, who may be family members or other advocates selected by the person with a disability. Customizing the terms and conditions of work through choice-based strategies, increasing access to personal budgets and other forms of person-directed financing, and otherwise mobilizing change in states and local communities are essential elements of designing effective strategies to increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities who are transitioning to the community or at risk of institutionalization.

   There is also a need for federal policies that support increased integrated employment opportunities. A large body of research, corroborated by anecdotal evidence, shows that integrated employment for people with significant disabilities improves employment outcomes, costs less than other adult day programs, and generates savings for taxpayers. It further indicates that the decision to serve an individual in an integrated rather than segregated program is often based on programmatic or funding concerns as opposed to the functional characteristics of an individual. Preliminary findings demonstrate that supported employment programs and other means of customizing employment to meet individual needs can lead to decreased dependency on federal disability benefit programs, a reduction in the need for costly alternatives such as workshops or activity centers, and an increase in the taxes paid by workers with disabilities.⁶

   Finally, it is critical to have the data needed to measure progress in assisting people with disabilities to enter the workforce. Statistical data about the incidence, prevalence, and distribution of disability, and the characteristics and experiences of people with disabilities, is critical to planning services, evaluating programs, and formulating public policy. Federal agencies, the disability community, and other stakeholders all need accurate and reliable employment statistics for the disability population to best determine where to target grants, projects, and other federal initiatives. This need is particularly evident when outlining future federal efforts related to the transition of individuals with disabilities from institutional settings to the community.

   1. ACTION #1 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase access to mainstream employment systems by people with disabilities and to increase coordination and leveraging of resources among those systems at the federal, state, and local levels.

      Lead Agencies: DOL's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce, the Civil Rights Center in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management (OASAM), the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and the Wage and Hour Division of the Employment Standards Administration (ESA).

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to ensure that the employment-related needs of young people and adults with disabilities, particularly those who are transitioning from institutions into the community or who are at risk of institutionalization, are met by the workforce investment system.

      Background: The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) provides the framework for delivery of employment and training services at the state and local levels to both employers and job seekers, including dislocated workers, new entrants to the workforce, and people with disabilities. These One-Stop Centers are intended to make a comprehensive range of employment, training, and related services available in a local community.

      In strengthening the ability of the One-Stops and mainstream employment systems to serve individuals with disabilities, there are multiple challenges relating to physical and programmatic accessibility, customer relations, and access to knowledge about accommodations and effective service strategies. ETA has developed a number of initiatives to address these issues, including the Work Incentive Grant Program and Welfare-to-Work grants that specifically target people with disabilities. Evaluation of these grants is ongoing and will identify promising practices. ETA has also developed two guides, currently in the DOL clearance process, which will assist the workforce investment system in better serving individuals with disabilities. The guides focus on accessibility and accommodation for persons with disabilities in the One-Stops, and working with individuals who have hidden disabilities (e.g., learning disabilities, mental retardation, psychiatric disabilities, and addictive disorders).

      WIA also identifies multiple programs and agencies that are to be workforce system partners, both required and optional, which must coordinate their programs and services through the local One-Stop Center System. State vocational rehabilitation (VR) programs are required partners with local One-Stop Centers and provide them with technical assistance. ETA and the Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) have been meeting at the federal level for several years and ETA has worked with state VR administrators on issues of mutual interest and to resolve problems related to WIA implementation. WIA emphasizes partnerships, collaboration, coordination, and integration -- a significant change in direction from years past, and one that presents tremendous opportunities.

      Plan of Action: To ensure the meaningful participation of individuals with disabilities in all employment activities, programs, and services, DOL will build on existing activities in ETA and ODEP to encourage coordinated and culturally appropriate outreach activities to individuals with disabilities; provide appropriate disability-related information, technical assistance and capacity-building to the One-Stop Center system; and explore how best to improve data collection and program evaluation activities in regard to services for individuals with disabilities. Accordingly, the following activities are DOL's initial plan of action:

      • ODEP will initiate an Olmstead Community Employment Initiative, developing and implementing a coordinated strategy to ensure that all DOL policies and activities fully address the employment and training needs of people with disabilities who are at risk of institutionalization, or who are transitioning from institutions into the workplace and the community. ODEP will work with other DOL agencies to facilitate this process and, after obtaining input from all relevant stakeholders, will work collaboratively to develop relevant recommendations and policy initiatives across DOL.

      • ODEP will award Olmstead Community Employment Planning and Implementation Grants to states that (1) develop an employment focus for persons with disabilities in their Olmstead state implementation plans and activities, and (2) incorporate activities coordinating employment and related supports at the state and local level. President Bush has requested $8.3 million of new money in FY 2002 to fund the grants, establish a technical assistance capability, carry out research, and support joint activities, both within DOL and in collaboration with other federal agencies. Recipients will be consortia of nonprofit advocacy or service agencies and Local Workforce Investment Boards (Local Boards), and they will conduct aggressive and intensive outreach to persons with significant disabilities who are leaving or have already left institutions, who are currently in segregated environments, and/or who are at risk of segregation. Activities will focus on increased capacity and coordination, as well as the provision of ongoing feedback to ODEP and other DOL agencies on effective implementation strategies. This information will be an essential element of ODEP's work to develop and initiate federal policy recommendations.

      • ETA and ODEP will work together to disseminate promising practices and successful strategies being identified under the Work Incentive Grant Program. ETA will work with ODEP to ensure close collaboration and the dissemination of information and technical assistance throughout the workforce system gleaned from the new ODEP Technical Assistance Grants. ETA will also continue to work with ODEP as this grant program progresses so that successful strategies identified in ODEP's Customized Employment and Olmstead Grants are leveraged and incorporated into the Work Incentive Grants and the overall workforce investment system, where applicable.

      • Building upon current technical assistance developed by ETA and other agencies, ODEP will explore and coordinate development of possible new technical assistance activities, policy guidance, and training materials relating to employment of individuals with significant disabilities. Areas to be considered include the following: collaboration with non-required but essential partners and programs (such as Medicaid and community mental health services), which are critical to addressing the employment needs of people transitioning to the community; blending of personalized budgeting resources from the Social Security Administration's Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program, vouchers and other sources; eligibility determination and documentation; service coordination among and between programs; use of personal agents and other forms of individualized support; strategies for increasing earning capacity; and other areas as identified and needed through research and outreach. These materials will be widely distributed, and trainings will be conducted throughout the workforce investment system through advocacy organizations, consumer and parent groups, and other appropriate entities.

      • ODEP, in collaboration with the Task Force, ETA, and/or the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management's Civil Rights Center (CRC), will undertake the following activities to access information needed for determining and initiating new policy actions and other initiatives:
        • Conduct joint listening sessions with customers of the workforce investment system -- including people with disabilities, employers, parents and family members, providers of employment supports and services, and other relevant stakeholders -- about changes needed to ensure meaningful and effective service delivery to people with significant disabilities.

        • Actively participate in ETA readiness workgroups and activities, and other initiatives, looking at the needs of people with disabilities in policy and technical assistance materials. A specific focus will be on performance measurement and accountability, eligible training providers, individual training accounts, eligibility determination, and partnerships.

        • Conduct disability-focused reviews and evaluations of implementation of Section 188 of WIA, the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity obligations. Under the leadership of the CRC, these evaluations will enable the Department of Labor to identify further areas in which federal training and technical assistance activities are needed to eliminate barriers and to prevent disability discrimination in the WIA programs.

        • ETA and RSA will collaborate to conduct comprehensive on-site state reviews of One-Stop Centers and develop a state guide. The reviews will enable DOL to identify further areas in which federal training and technical assistance activities are needed to enhance services to individuals with disabilities.

        • Explore data collection approaches relating to people with disabilities who are accessing both services and employment through the workforce investment system. It should be noted here that the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is testing a set of questions to see if it can identify the disability population in the context of a labor force survey. If the tests succeed and a set of questions can be placed in the Current Population Survey, policymakers will be able to use this data to help determine where to target future federal money on behalf of people with disabilities seeking employment.

      • DOL will build on its collaborative efforts related to employment of people with significant disabilities. Agencies and departments likely to be involved are ETA, the Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration and Office of Special Education Programs, the Social Security Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Transportation, and others as appropriate. ODEP will work with the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities to implement this action.

      • DOL will work to increase One-Stop Center services to veterans with disabilities, including those transitioning to the community from the military, those in Department of Veterans Affairs' medical centers and residential facilities, and those at risk of placement in residential facilities.

      • ODEP, the Task Force, and other DOL agencies will convene stakeholder meetings to identify policies and practices that pose barriers to employment and securing needed supports by people with significant disabilities. These meetings will also provide a mechanism for ongoing input and feedback to ODEP in developing policy actions to improve employment outcomes for people with disabilities.

      • DOL will facilitate the development of an employment-focused Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between agencies and departments that are essential partners to the workforce investment system. The purpose of the MOU would be to (1) clarify integrated employment as a goal for adults with significant disabilities; (2) coordinate agency resources and capacity building initiatives at the federal level; and (3) serve as a model for state level coordination to ensure that employment becomes part of the planning process for people transitioning from institutional care into the community.

      • ODEP will support collaboration with ETA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Transportation, to develop strategies to encourage integration of housing and transportation services for people with disabilities within One-Stop Centers.

      Finally, we would look for better interagency communication and accountability for problem solving in the area of workforce development. -- Cathie Sullivan, Policy Analyst, Service Employees International Union, Washington, D.C. I would like to see all of you look at your federal policies on employment for people with disabilities. And let's move ahead. -- Aileen O'Hare, Consumer, STAND Together of Montgomery County, Montgomery Village, Maryland. If our national policy states that disability in no way diminishes the right to pursue meaningful careers, why is it that most people with disabilities continue to be segregated and excluded from the community workforce? While federal policies of the U.S. eloquently and clearly state integrated competitive employment, independence, and inclusion as its goals, the reality is that most people, particularly those with high support needs, continue to be excluded. -- Celane McWhorter, Association for Persons in Supported Employment, Alexandria, Virginia. [F]or people with very significant employment support needs, [integrated employment] has more to do with where you live and what organization or agency or service provider you happen to get slotted over to. It determines the kind of outcome that you might experience. And that is entirely unacceptable.... -- Marcie Roth, Director of Advocacy and Public Policy, National Council on Independent Living, Arlington, Virginia.

   2. ACTION #2 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase employment choices and earnings opportunities by expanding capacity for individually designed customized employment.

      Lead Agencies: DOL's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Employment and Training Administration.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to build and/or increase the capacity for, and availability of, customized employment strategies throughout the workforce investment system.

      Background: The Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, through its work and activities the past three years, has identified building professional competency within local One-Stop Centers and with their partners, providers, and employers, as a promising area for a coordinated initiative. Task Force research also indicates a need to expand the availability of personal agents, job development personnel, and eligible providers who can provide customized employment assistance, as well as develop other strategies for securing customized employment.

      Plan of Action: The customized employment initiative for increasing employment of people with significant disabilities, including those transitioning or preparing to transition to the community from segregated environments or at risk of segregation, will be a major area of policy development for ODEP. The initiative provides the opportunity to bring together in a local area multiple cutting-edge strategies and promising practices in terms of employment for people with significant disabilities and systemic change within the state. The following activities comprise an initial plan of action:

      • ODEP will expand the Customized Employment Grant Initiative to 10 additional sites in FY 2002.⁷ These grants support Local Boards in systematically reviewing their policies and practices in terms of services to persons with disabilities, incorporating new and innovative practices, as appropriate, and developing comprehensive models of customized employment services and supports for individuals with significant disabilities. In addition, Local Boards will provide ongoing feedback and information to ODEP.

      • ODEP and ETA will jointly determine next steps in policy guidance, technical assistance, and training related to providing customized employment opportunities for people with significant disabilities within the One-Stop Center system.

      • ODEP will collaborate with ESA's Wage and Hour Division to develop training and technical assistance on increasing wages and customized employment for individuals with significant disabilities earning commensurate wages under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, and disseminate this assistance to their stakeholder networks.

      • ODEP will review materials and guidance provided by the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) to ensure that appropriate information is available on providing accommodations to, and facilitating customized employment opportunities for, individuals with significant disabilities. Funded by ODEP, JAN is a resource for individuals with disabilities, employers, and others, and has a toll-free information line and a web site providing information on the employment provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and resources for technical assistance, funding, education, and services related to the employment of people with disabilities. JAN can help individuals with disabilities, local One-Stop Centers, and government and private sector agencies, by providing information about the tools and methodologies available for persons with significant disabilities to maximize their ability to perform well at work and at home.

      • The DOL Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration (PWBA) will expand its education campaigns and programs to provide more education and outreach directed toward Americans with disabilities who are entering the workplace. PWBA will develop new material, building on its current materials which address the importance of health benefits coverage and the important choices to be made about health benefits when entering the workforce, to address specific information/questions to assist Americans with disabilities. PWBA will also expand its materials addressing the importance of saving for a secure future and help on how to do it as well as information on retirement benefit plan rights to address any specific information/questions to assist Americans with disabilities. PWBA will work with its partners, as well as continuing to add new partners, to expand its outreach and provide more focused assistance to the disabled community through wider dissemination and more direct delivery of this important information.

      Workers themselves are demanding more autonomy, more freedom, more customization of the terms and conditions of their employment. As we invest in critical job training, we are giving workers the bargaining power they need to custom-design their jobs around their lives, instead of the other way around. -- Elaine L. Chao, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Labor, Speaking to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on January 24, 2001, Washington, D.C. Determining and controlling one's destiny has always been close to the core of the American psyche. We take the "liberty" part of the preamble to the Constitution very seriously. We believe that each individual should have the right to determine what is relevant and important in the pursuit of a meaningful life. -- Michael Callahan, Marc Gold & Associates, and Employment for All (2001). For every person in supportive employment there are three to five people that remain in segregated programs throughout the United States. The situation is perplexing. It has become clear that people do not need to get ready for community jobs.... -- Pat Rogan, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. We can look at choice not as one more property that makes up the employment and workforce development system, but as a quality that emerges from the way the parts of the system work together. Missing parts, not much choice. Poor relationships among the parts, not much choice. Strong forces pulling the parts this way and that, not much choice. Greater alignment and harmony among the parts, more choice. Thoughtful development of new parts, more choice. -- John O'Brien, quoted in "Another Look at Informed Choice," prepared for the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities (2001).

   3. ACTION #3 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase successful transitions to employment and post-secondary activities for young people with disabilities.

      Lead Agencies: DOL's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Employment and Training Administration, and the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to prepare today's young adults with disabilities for participation in the workforce of the future, and develop strategies between, and coordination among, our education, employment, and other systems (such as health care and transportation) so as to support their successful transitions.

      Background: Preparing for the workforce is a continuous process that must begin in the school years and focus on developing skills that encourage and facilitate participation in all aspects of community living. Young people with disabilities face particular barriers to succeeding in school, going to college, becoming employed and living independently. Low educational attainment, low education and employment expectations, and confusing government programs and benefits with conflicting eligibility criteria, have resulted in many young people with disabilities not making successful transitions from school to post-secondary education, employment, and independent living.

      More than 20 years of research and experience confirms that smooth and successful transitions to employment for young people with disabilities include the following elements: (1) Career exploration and development as an integral part of the educational process; (2) Use of contextual teaching and learning methodologies that clearly connect classroom learning with the real world; (3) Work-based learning activities that tie the world of work back to classroom learning; (4) Partnerships between multiple agencies serving young people with disabilities and employers; and (5) Facilitation of self-advocacy, self-determination, family interventions, and independent living.

      Plan of Action: It is essential that our evolving workforce investment system includes young people with disabilities in all employment activities, programs, and services. Accordingly, DOL proposes the following plan of action:

      • The Task Force will convene the Youth Advisory Committee, composed of 15 young people (ages 14 to 28) with diverse disabilities and backgrounds. The Committee's role is to advise the Secretary of Labor and her designees (which include the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce and the Office of Disability Employment Policy) on education, transition, employment, health, rehabilitation, and independent living issues affecting young people with disabilities.

      • ODEP and ETA will encourage the participation of young people with disabilities on workforce investment system youth councils, providing meaningful opportunities for input and resulting in improved service to young people with disabilities.

      • ODEP will work with other DOL agencies and appropriate federal departments on activities that promote the transition of young people with disabilities from school to post-secondary opportunities and/or employment, including researching, demonstrating, and disseminating successful strategies for transitioning young adults with significant disabilities into employment, and initiation of policy actions and implementation ensuring such strategies are utilized within DOL programs and activities.

      • ODEP and ETA will explore policy and implementation barriers and facilitators to inclusion of young people with disabilities in workforce investment activities, including looking at how to best reach out to and increase participation of young people with significant disabilities who are either transitioning from segregated environments or at risk of segregation.

      • As part of this policy initiative, ODEP has awarded $3.85 million to fund model youth demonstration programs to increase the participation of youth with disabilities in workforce development activities, especially as it relates to their accessing services from local One-Stop Centers. Recipients will be developing, implementing, evaluating, and disseminating new and/or improved strategies and techniques to increase youth participation and positive outcomes.

      • ODEP will secure information from its national WIA Disability Technical Assistance Consortium, designed to assist One-Stop Centers and other WIA-assisted programs to better serve youth with disabilities, including youth with significant disabilities transitioning from residential and other segregated environments to the community. This Consortium will provide ongoing data on outcomes, strategies, and other information needed to inform ODEP of needed policy-related actions.

      • ODEP will also utilize information from state Youth Leadership Forums to develop policy initiatives and other actions necessary to increase employment outcomes for young people with disabilities. These Forums are designed to help youth with disabilities build confidence, develop teamwork skills, and take responsibility for their own lives. The Forums will be reviewed to determine how they can be better utilized to serve youth with significant disabilities who are transitioning from institutions or other segregated environments. ODEP will also participate in the cross-agency National Youth Leadership Network, which promotes youth leadership at the national level and will be hosting a national conference in July 2002.

      • ETA will explore expanded training of Job Corps administrators and staff on disability-related issues, and collection of data and other measures documenting outreach to, and inclusion of, young people with disabilities. During the outreach/admissions phase of the Job Corps Career Development Services System, young adults are assessed as to their needs and abilities, and young people with disabilities are provided the opportunity to request reasonable accommodations. ODEP will collaborate with ETA in this effort to ensure that the needs of youth with significant disabilities transitioning to the community are considered.

      • ETA will work to implement the July 2001 MOU between DOL and the Department of Education regarding the development of a coordinated, interagency initiative to improve the employment opportunities and earnings of current workers and new labor market entrants who currently do not possess the reading and math skills essential to participate successfully in the 21^st century workforce.

   4. ACTION #4 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase employment, entrepreneurial and small business opportunities for people with disabilities.

      Lead Agencies: DOL's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce, the Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP), and the Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS), all working in conjunction with the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to ensure that self-employment and micro-enterprise are included in the Executive Order's implementation activities as viable pathways to economic independence and full integration into the community and the workforce.

      Background: Ten years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, entrepreneurship is a critical next step in the full participation of individuals with disabilities in America's communities. Small business ownership and micro-enterprise can be very successful and rewarding paths to economic self-sufficiency. For people transitioning to the community from residential or other segregated environments, this area holds particular promise -- yet there is a tremendous lack of understanding of the potential of this area for employment of these individuals.

      The Task Force and ODEP have identified a broad range of obstacles, both within and outside the federal government, confronting people with disabilities who are interested in self-employment and small business ownership. These obstacles include a lack of access to capital, lack of information on business planning, and federal programs that discourage entrepreneurship. These have stifled the efforts of people with disabilities who have sought to become self-employed.

      Despite these and many other barriers, people with disabilities have a higher rate of self-employment and small business experience (12.2%) than people without disabilities (7.8%), and nearly a third of vocational rehabilitation clients polled nationally have said they would choose self-employment as their preferred outcome of vocational rehabilitation. There is a need to address these barriers and provide additional opportunities to make self-employment a viable employment option for people with significant disabilities.

      Plan of Action: Coordination across multiple public and private initiatives -- including those targeted specifically to individuals with disabilities and those targeted to the general public -- is needed to address the range of severe barriers faced by entrepreneurs with disabilities. These efforts will need to focus on increasing state and local coordination, training service providers, accessing micro-enterprise funds, leveraging federal government procurement opportunities, and developing mentoring programs. The following activities will be an initial step toward accomplishing this goal:

      • ODEP, in concert with the Task Force and the Small Business Administration, will develop and implement an action plan with multiple DOL agencies to promote self-employment and small business development among people with disabilities, particularly those with the most significant disabilities. This plan will include, but not be limited to, the following actions
        • ODEP and ETA will explore ways to encourage One-Stop Centers to incorporate technical assistance supporting small business ownership, self-employment and entrepreneurship into their service delivery.

        • OSBP will target businesses owned by persons with disabilities by conducting at least two procurement vendor outreach sessions. OSBP will also conduct training targeted for veterans with disabilities (both service-connected and nonservice-connected) in the new small business procurement initiatives. These efforts should be coordinated with ODEP, ETA, and the One-Stop Centers.

        • The Women's Bureau (WB), in collaboration with ODEP, will provide outreach to women with disabilities who are interested in self-employment.

        • ODEP will coordinate with VETS to provide technical assistance and appropriate referrals for veterans with disabilities interested in starting their own businesses. ODEP will also consult with relevant stakeholders, such as the Veterans Task Force on Entrepreneurship.

        • ODEP will increase development of micro-enterprise opportunities for people with disabilities, including significant disabilities, through participation on the Federal Interagency Workgroup on Microenterprise Development. This group provides a vehicle for encouraging development of micro-enterprise in America through policymaking, support, technical assistance, and funding for micro-enterprise programs.

      • ODEP will work with other relevant agencies, including the Small Business Administration, the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Department of the Treasury, and the Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration, to educate lenders about the viability of small business ownership for people with disabilities. Given that access to capital is the cornerstone of any effort to start a small business, any strategy addressing this area must consider the effects of current policy as well as the need for access to micro-loan and venture capital funds.

      • ODEP will collaborate with relevant federal agencies to examine the possibility of increasing government procurement opportunities for small business owners with disabilities, and to look at whether the procurement process can be used to encourage companies that contract with the government to hire and promote individuals with significant disabilities. The federal government spends over 180 billion dollars annually to procure services and products from the private sector, and there is a need for fresh thinking as to how the federal government can stimulate more procurement opportunities for small business owned by people with disabilities.

      • In addition to these identified actions, the Department of Labor recommends convening a conference, including the SBA and other relevant agencies, on micro-enterprise, self-employment, and small business for people with disabilities. Such a conference would elevate and promote increasing self-employment, micro-enterprise, and other small business opportunities among people with disabilities, including people with significant disabilities transitioning to the community from segregated environments.

      The role of government is to create an environment in which the entrepreneurial person in America who works hard and dreams big can realize his or her dreams. That's the role of government.... If we want to have a strong economy and a strong America, it is important to understand that small businesses generate 51% of the private sector GDP and that small businesses provide 75% of the net new jobs in America.... The small business owner is incredibly important to the future of this country. -- President George W. Bush, Addressing Small Business Owners in the East Room on March 16, 2001. My son also has a dream. And it's a dream to be employed. I share his dream.... I asked for a business plan to be drawn up because I see in my son's life a business co-op.... He will be a part owner. I see micro-enterprises, micro-boards, business co-ops.... It's about his income... They do have a program for entrepreneurship; however, it's not for people with cognitive disabilities. He is excluded. -- Jackie Golden, Parent, Washington, D.C. Small businesses in the United States represent 99.7% of all employers, employ 53% of the private work force, provide 47% of all U.S. sales, account for 35% of federal contract dollars, 28% of high tech jobs, and represent 96% of all U.S. exporters. -- Partner America, A Public/Private Partnership Between the U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Management Services, Inc.

   5. ACTION #5 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase One-Stop Center employment services for people with psychiatric disabilities, including those transitioning to the community from institutions or those at risk for placement in residential facilities.

      Lead Agencies: DOL's lead agencies in this effort will be ODEP, working in conjunction with ETA, the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce, the Task Force, the HHS Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Small Business Administration, and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to address the unique issues involved in providing employment services to people with psychiatric disabilities under the Workforce Investment Act and to increase the employment rates of people with psychiatric disabilities.

      Background: The general public, including many mental health providers and people with psychiatric disabilities, is not aware of what is available at local employment services offices or the new One-Stop Centers. People with psychiatric disabilities want to work, want to produce, and want to be engaged with others. Getting the public to understand and act on this concept, however, remains a challenge. While unemployment rates for the general public hover around 5%, national unemployment rates for people with a psychiatric disability range from 70% to 85%.

      In an effort to increase understanding and awareness among One-Stop staff, ETA has developed a comprehensive guide to serving individuals with psychiatric and other "hidden" disabilities, as well as providing numerous workshops on this topic.

      Other federal agencies have done work in the employment arena that ODEP and DOL can build on. Recently, the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), a part of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration at HHS, completed a landmark five-year initiative called the Employment Intervention Demonstration Program (EIDP). This program tested the effectiveness of employment preparation and support services for adults with severe mental illness and included careful study of what employment interventions actually work for persons with mental disabilities. In addition, it identified methods for overcoming barriers to implementation of exemplary employment practices, and disseminated results to the field and to all of the various agencies for federal and state governments that are responsible for improving employment opportunities for persons who are disadvantaged.

      Plan of Action: To enhance access by people with psychiatric disabilities employment services under WIA, DOL will work with other agencies to promote the full inclusion of people with psychiatric disabilities in the programs and services in the One-Stop Center system. ODEP will lead this effort, which will include:

      • Consultation with ETA, and representatives from the Task Force, SAMHSA, SBA, OPM, and stakeholders;

      • Exploration of how to increase employment of people with psychiatric disabilities, including how to improve dissemination of ETA's guide, EIDP materials, and other technical assistance throughout the entire workforce investment system and the provider community; and

      • Exploration of how best to enhance coordination and collaboration between the mental health communities and local One-Stop Centers.

      We need agencies and services that are integrated, coordinated, designed for people whose disabilities relapse, return, stabilize, and with help and hope, recover. -- Karen Kangas, Consumer, Connecticut Department of Mental Health/Addiction Services, Community Education and Recovery Affairs, Hartford, Connecticut.

2. Increase the Availability and Quality of Personal Assistants and Community Workers, Preventing Unnecessary Institutionalization of People Who Need Assistance with Activities of Daily Living and Providing Supports Needed to Seek and Maintain Employment.

   Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Employment Standards Administration, and the Employment and Training Administration, working in conjunction with the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities.

   Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to ensure that people with significant disabilities moving into the community have access to the personal attendant and other direct care personnel they need; there is an urgent need for a coordinated federal plan to increase the earnings, employment status, and labor supply of personal assistants and other direct care staff and community service workers.

   Background: As the President's Executive Order is implemented, and more people with significant disabilities enter the workforce, the already critical need for personal care assistants and other direct care staff and community service workers will become even more pronounced. The inability to attract and retain dedicated people in these fields is in part related to the fact that these workers tend to earn very low pay, work long hours, and often receive no benefits. There is an urgent need to address the areas of recruiting, training, retaining, promoting, and improving the earnings/benefits of personal assistants and other community service workers.

   Plan of Action: The following activities constitute an initial plan of action to attempt to increase earnings opportunities, employment status, and labor supply of personal assistants and other community workers:

   • ODEP will work to identify and propose options for increasing the availability of personal assistants for people with disabilities and providing some path of career progression for personal assistants and other direct care staff. ODEP expects to consult with DOL agencies, including the Women's Bureau and ETA's Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training (BAT), Welfare to Work Office, and Senior Community Service Employment Program; the Department of Education; HHS's Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation's Office for Disability, Aging and Long Term Care; and other appropriate departments. The overarching goal is to develop a cross-agency/cross-department plan to increase the availability and quality of personal assistants, and to identify options for the education, training, and career advancement for personal assistants and other direct care staff and community service workers. In designing this plan, consideration will be given to patterning some activities after those currently underway at BAT to increase the number and employment status of professional childcare providers. The possibility of encouraging the use of Senior Community Service Employment Program participants, volunteers from the National Service Corporation's programs, former welfare recipients, high school students required to perform community service, and members of faith-based and community organizations, to fill this void will also be explored, as will the potential role of partnerships with community and faith-based service providers.

   • ODEP and its partners in this activity will convene a listening session so people with disabilities can provide input on this initiative. A similar listening session will be conducted for input from service providers and other direct care staff and community service workers.

   • ODEP and ETA will explore increased access to personal assistance supports through the One-Stop Center system.

   • ODEP will establish an online registry, similar to America's Job Bank, on DisAbilityDirect.gov where local or community-based organizations that help locate personal assistance can be identified.

   • ODEP will work with ESA's Wage and Hour Division to determine if a study of the Fair Labor Standards Act's treatment of employees engaged in companionship and live-in services would be useful in assessing any impact in this area.

   • ODEP will work with the Internal Revenue Service to develop and disseminate technical assistance to ensure that people with disabilities are aware of their responsibilities as household employers under federal tax laws.

   [There is a need to]... focus greater attention on the shortage of front-line and other para-professional workers in the home and community-based services area...[this is] an important area for Department of Labor and Department of Health and Human Services to work together because it's going to grow and get a great deal worse over time. -- Howard Bedlin, Vice President For Public Policy and Advocacy, National Council on Aging, Washington, D.C. We urge HHS to work closely with the Department of Labor to implement efforts to begin to resolve the [low wage] crisis. -- Martha Ford, The ARC of the United States, Washington, D.C. And I fear that if I can't have attendant care when I need it in my home, I will be institutionalized. And what I will lose, then, it's the last thing that I have. It's my freedom... -- J. Neel Ellis, Disability Housing Advocates of Northern Virginia, Reston, Virginia.

3. Leverage Technology Resources for People with Disabilities, Including Increasing the Use of Technology as a Tool for Employment Information and Outreach, Facilitating and Increasing Telework Opportunities, and Increasing Employment Opportunities in Technology-Related Industries.

   Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Employment and Training Administration, the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce, and the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities.

   Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to increase the availability, affordability, and accessibility of technology, and develop appropriate technology-related training, so that people with significant disabilities have access to the assistive and information technology they need to successfully move into the work place and into the community.

   Background: Electronic and information technology have fundamentally changed the workplace and the requisite skills and knowledge needed to fully participate in the 21st century workplace. Technology is leveling the work environment by removing physical and communication barriers. For example, assistive technologies such as voice recognition systems, computers that can be operated by eye movements, and innovative methods to render electronic, screen-readable versions of documents are now opening the doors of opportunity for many Americans with disabilities. In addition, telecommunications technology is changing the notion of what constitutes the work place, affording many people the option of telecommuting, working from their own homes or nearby telework centers. Finally, by reducing some of the disadvantages that small companies face in competing with larger companies, technology also offers a way to unlock growth potential and create new jobs in small business and entrepreneurship.

   The record growth of jobs in the information technology (IT) industry is opening up an enormous range of opportunities for meaningful and stable careers for people with disabilities. It is estimated that by 2006, half of all jobs will be in information technology. This phenomenon can be directly attributed to market globalization and the reduction, if not eradication, of geographic boundaries. Companies that were once limited to conducting business in a specific and limited area are now equipped, through technological innovations such as e-mail, the Internet, teleconferencing, and fax machines, to compete in markets outside of their traditional boundaries. As companies move to adjust their current way of conducting business to capture or maintain their share of the global market, employees and workers who are skilled in electronic and information technology will continue to be in high demand. At the same time that the demand for technology workers is increasing, however, demographic data indicates that in the next 10 to 20 years, America will experience a reduction in its workforce due to the aging of the population. Therefore, the skills of every American must be developed and promoted.

   While the accelerated development and use of electronic and information technologies in the home, school, and workplace appears to offer seemingly endless possibilities, it also has the potential to create new challenges regarding access and use by persons with significant disabilities, particularly those with cognitive disabilities. Technology can be a great equalizer, but it also has the capacity to further divide the class of citizens with significant disabilities who are neither computer literate nor connected to information. The New Freedom Initiative, however, promises to level the playing field by ensuring that Americans with disabilities have affordable access to the best technologies of today and that even better technologies will be available for them in the future. If people with disabilities are to reap the full benefit of the high-tech industry boom, and participate in this rapidly expanding area, however, access is only one piece of the puzzle. There is also a need for comprehensive training and skills development activities to ensure that people with disabilities in the 21^st century workforce are equipped with the tools they need to succeed.

   There are several ongoing initiatives at DOL relating to technology and employment of individuals with disabilities, including the following:

   • ETA's Disability Information Technology Initiative recognizes the potential of the IT industry to provide significant employment opportunities to persons with disabilities. In June 2001, ETA awarded six grants, totaling $3.25 million, to Local Boards to provide training in IT skills to persons with disabilities, in partnership with private IT and nonprofit entities. Partners participating in the grants include community-based organizations focused particularly on services to individuals with disabilities and independent living centers.

   • ETA is funding a technology initiative to identify and develop web-based information on promising practices. The project is profiling exemplary skill and employment training programs for individuals with disabilities and will provide technical assistance to the One-Stop Center system on these practices. Successful disability employment projects will be profiled, as well as model memorandums of understanding, assistive technologies, and other One-Stop issues.

   • Many of the DOL services that benefit people with disabilities are offered electronically through America's Career Kit and its information systems -- America's Job Bank, America's Career InfoNet, America's Learning Exchange, America's Service Locator, and O*NET (a database of occupations and their requirements that can be used by job seekers, employers, educators, and training professionals). O*NET staff have been engaged in an extensive outreach effort with a variety of groups to assure that it supports the needs of individuals with disabilities as users of the information system and the needs of employers in hiring individuals with disabilities. O*NET is working with many organizations and associations to identify and implement accommodations and information to assist in employment-related needs of individuals with disabilities. ETA has also entered into a new partnership with Monster.com, the largest private electronic job bank, which will allow DOL and Monster.com to collaborate in a variety of areas for their mutual benefit.

   • ETA has underway a technology-related project geared specifically to Native Americans with disabilities under a contract with the American Indian Disability Technical Assistance Center. The goal is to create a culturally relevant IT training curriculum for use by employment and training service providers serving Native American communities. The development of the curriculum involves input from Native Americans with disabilities, tribal leaders and colleges, the advisory council to ETA's programs, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and representatives of the IT industry.

   • ETA reaches out to the employment and training community and the general public through its "disAbility Online" web site, which provides access to extensive information and resources relating to employment issues for individuals with disabilities.

   • ODEP recently awarded grants to 12 organizations to develop demonstration High School/High Tech program sites, aligning their programs with WIA's youth-related programs. High School/High Tech provides young people with disabilities with opportunities to explore their interest in technology-related careers in a year-long program of corporate site visits, mentoring, job shadowing, guest speakers, after school activities and paid summer internships.

   • DOL, through the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), is responsible for ensuring compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, as it relates to electronic information technologies accessibility for persons with disabilities. Due to the importance of the Internet and related web requirements, DOL launched a major initiative in 1998 to identify accessibility issues, and deficiencies in bringing public Internet documents into compliance. DOL's web masters have taken aggressive steps to ensure all DOL web pages are accessible and available in an alternative text format. Each published document was evaluated against accessibility standards outlined in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, and modifications were made as required.

   Plan of Action: To ensure that people with disabilities have access to information and assistive technology and to the skills training needed to succeed in the 21^st century workforce, the following activities comprise DOL's initial plan of action:

   • ODEP will work with the Task Force, the Department of Education, HHS, the Department of Agriculture (USDA), and other agencies and departments as appropriate, to coordinate and implement a plan that improves the availability, affordability, and accessibility of technology in the school, home, and workplace for youth and adults with significant disabilities. One area of focus will be on developing proposals for incentives to allow both employers and individuals to offset ancillary costs such as specialized training, and access to assistive technology and high-speed telephone service. Another area will include exploring the possibility of arranging for Internet service usable by people with disabilities through local and regional offices of USDA, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Postal Service.

   • DOL, in conjunction with other Task Force member agencies, will work with industry leaders in electronic and information technology to develop effective accessibility strategies, to anticipate access issues associated with new technologies or designs, and to test and evaluate prototype devices and systems.

   • ODEP will work across DOL to expand opportunities in the critical high-tech area for young people and adults with significant disabilities, and to provide information and technical assistance to employers about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities as employees. One goal of this effort will be to encourage the incorporation of IT marketable skills and related initiatives (developed with industry involvement and support) into WIA-sponsored programs and activities.

   • ODEP will evaluate existing DOL-funded or -administered technology programs, projects, and activities to determine how best to use technology to assist people with disabilities in obtaining and maintaining jobs and to ensure coordination across DOL programs and services.

   • The Women's Bureau will hold a series of virtual conference calls on ten technology-related topics designed to (1) increase the number of girls and women, including those with disabilities, who participate in technology-related education and training programs, and (2) increase the number of women who choose to stay in technology-related careers or who wish to advance in their fields.

   • ODEP will provide opportunities for students with significant disabilities to explore careers in science, mathematics, and technology through the High School/High Tech Program. Success in this effort will depend largely on fostering public-private partnerships to provide the resources and experiences needed to allow participants to explore an expanded range of career choices and the chance to develop their own customized training and career path.

   • ODEP will work with ETA and other appropriate DOL agencies to explore how telementoring can best be used to improve employment outcomes for young people with disabilities.

   • ODEP will collaborate with the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to explore using volunteers to help improve information technology skills of youth with disabilities and to encourage the CNS State Commissions to expand support of demonstrations that include youth with significant disabilities.

   • ODEP will expand its DisAbilityDirect.gov web site to better serve the employment-related needs of people with disabilities. An interagency portal will give employment information and links; provide educational and life-long learning opportunities for people with disabilities, employers, organizations, and other interested people; and aggregate federal resources providing access to assistive and universally based technologies. The site will be designed to allow people from local municipalities and states to locate and identify services relating to employment opportunities available to them within their own communities. A series of general on-line learning modules will be developed, as will learning modules specifically directed to helping interested stakeholders understand and gain access to federally supported programs, including grant opportunities. Other DOL resources will also be available through DisAbilityDirect. For example, the Women's Bureau, in collaboration with ODEP, will be developing an online community resource guide to provide consumers and workforce professionals with a listing of community and faith-based services available in their local communities.

   We have found in our effort that assistive technology, meaning computers that utilize, for example, speech, printed enhancement devices or make technology accessible is truly the only way that individuals cannot only compete in employment but at school, at home... -- Dale Otto, Consumer, President and CEO of the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind, Washington, D.C.

4. Increase Innovative and Strategic Partnerships Between the Federal Government and Employers, People with Disabilities, Family Members, Providers, Community Organizations, and Others in the Private Sector, including Foundations and Faith-Based Organizations.

   There is a growing consensus across America that successful government programs cannot do it all. Innovative initiatives must be developed and implemented at the national level if the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace is to become a routine part of how employers, businesses, and people with and without disabilities go about their normal activities. Effectuating such broad sweeping change will require that government work cooperatively and collaboratively, through appropriate legal arrangements, with private industry and problem solvers representing all sectors of the community. Foundations, which represent billions of dollars of private funding, and faith-based and other community organizations must be included in this effort.

   One area in which partnerships can be particularly effective is in combating attitudinal barriers, which often impede people with disabilities from obtaining work in the private sector. In the last few years, education strategies and public-private partnerships have begun to open the doors of offices and minds of business executives to recruiting and hiring people with disabilities. Partnerships are not merely an important way to affect this type of change -- they are essential. Universities' curricula need to be developed with private sector and service provider input, and corporate policy should reflect collaboration with union practices, service providers, and government services such as transportation. Entrepreneurs with disabilities must be able to count on the same access to capital, management advice, and business mentors available to other people with good ideas. The broader the representation of various community sectors engaged in and committed to this end, the greater the likelihood for success.

   Currently there are a number of public-private and interagency partnership activities associated with DOL initiatives and programs, including the following:

   • The Employment and Training Administration awards Work Incentive Grants to individual organizations or consortia of entities to improve services, provide outreach to the disability community, and link public and private providers in the disability community to the One-Stop system. For example, these grants may be used to inform State departments of mental health and their provider organizations about America's Career Kit or other ETA-funded employment and training resources.

   • ETA also has worked with the Department of Education's Office of the Assistant Secretary of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) in a number of areas to promote full implementation of WIA. ETA and OSERS staff meet on a monthly basis to identify and resolve workforce issues and coordinate activities in an effort to provide greater opportunity for individuals with disabilities to benefit from WIA programs and services.

   • Under an Interagency Agreement with the Department of Education's National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) and the DOL's Civil Rights Center, ETA provides funding towards technical assistance on disability issues to the One-Stop system.

   • ETA and the Social Security Administration have worked closely for several years to foster One-Stop participation as an Employment Network under the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act, thereby increasing access by individuals with disabilities to employment and training services through the One-Stop system. ETA also worked closely with ODEP in developing comments on the Ticket to Work Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. In addition, ETA has provided $450,000 over the past three years to SSA to support 12 state partnership grants, which foster the development of state and local partnerships.

   • O*NET staff have been engaged in an extensive outreach effort with a variety of groups and agencies to identify and implement accommodations and information to assist in employment-related needs of individuals with disabilities. O*NET -- the Occupational Information Network -- is an easy-to-use database accessible from any web browser. It replaces the Dictionary of Occupational Titles and contains comprehensive information on job requirements and worker competencies. O*NET development has been a collaborative effort, joining the public and private sector interests, and has given employers of all sizes and across all fields a powerful means for accessing critical information that affects their bottom-line every day.

   • ETA's Welfare-to-Work Office cooperates extensively with the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services to address disability concerns, and has conducted workshops on disability at numerous conferences and sponsored forums on hidden disabilities, highlighting its technical assistance guide on learning, psychiatric, mild mental retardation, and other hidden disabilities.

   • Project EMPLOY is a joint initiative of the ODEP and the Society for Human Resource Management, in partnership with employers, to address employment barriers resulting from negative stereotyping of individuals with significant cognitive disabilities such as mental retardation, psychiatric disabilities, brain injuries, and autism. Persons with significant cognitive disabilities are often relegated to entry level, dead-end jobs without any individualized assessments of their desire to perform other work -- despite the fact that many individuals have demonstrated the interest and ability to perform more complex jobs. Through a combination of outreach, education, and technical assistance, Project EMPLOY focuses on identifying and placing a qualified labor pool of people with significant disabilities in a variety of occupations and industries that provide salaries above the minimum wage, offer fringe benefits, and have career development potential. Project EMPLOY is particularly relevant to Olmstead issues because it directly affects persons with cognitive disabilities who represent a large percentage of the individuals with disabilities who live in nursing homes, group homes, or other types of institutions, or who are at risk of being placed in these facilities.

   • ODEP is working with the Business Leadership Network (BLN), a national employer-led initiative of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The National BLN promotes BLN partnerships with state and local BLNs, which are led by employers and supported by disability employment service providers. The BLN advances promising disability practices to enhance employment opportunities for people with disabilities and encourages two primary personnel policies: diversity practices that include people with disabilities and hiring practices that target candidates with disabilities. The BLN operates on a principle commonly accepted by the business community -- a business will adopt a practice when told by another business that the practice is good business.

   The continuation of these activities, in combination with the following, comprise DOL's initial action plan in this area:

   1. ACTION #1 -- The Department of Labor will work to aggressively promote positive images of people with disabilities as workers and community participants through a multi-part public awareness campaign.

      Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agency in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to eradicate the misconceptions, prejudices, and attitudes that prevent many individuals with disabilities from becoming employed or self-employed, and otherwise fully participating in American society.

      Background: The existence and persistence of erroneous stereotypes has contributed to making the quest for meaningful employment unsuccessful for the overwhelming majority of adults with disabilities. There is a pervasive lack of understanding of the needs and abilities of people with disabilities, even among people with disabilities themselves. In the past, people with disabilities were not expected to work. As was noted by President Bush, however, in announcing the New Freedom Initiative, "Old misconceptions about physical and mental disability are being discredited. Old barriers are falling away. Our task is now clear: We must speed up the day when the last barrier has been removed to full and independent lives for every American with or without disability."

      Whether born from ignorance, fear, or misunderstanding, these attitudes keep people from appreciating -- and experiencing -- the full potential a person with a disability can achieve. In addition, these attitudes are frequently coupled with a focus on a person's disability rather than on his or her abilities. Information and familiarity are key to defeating these negative images, myths, and stereotypes. And they must be defeated if full inclusion in the community is to become a reality.

      Like employment generally, our society has not traditionally viewed self-employment as a realistic expectation for people with disabilities. If, however, the right policy and program innovations are in place, people with disabilities can work and small business ventures hold potentially limitless possibilities for increasing the employment rate of this population. Outreach and awareness-raising efforts are needed to educate the public, individuals with disabilities, government agencies, financial institutions, and business development professionals about the rich talents of this untapped labor pool, and of the viability of business ownership for people with disabilities.

      Plan of Action: ODEP will launch a comprehensive and coordinated public awareness/education campaign to decrease stigma, eliminate attitudinal barriers, and increase employment opportunities for adults and youth with significant disabilities. This multi-faceted campaign will target business and industry, lenders, small businesses, families, and others, with a particular emphasis on hiring people with significant disabilities, and will consist of the following activities:

      • ODEP, in collaboration with the Small Business Administration, will distribute educational packets that promote the viability of small business ownership for people with disabilities through federal and state banking associations, with the goal that lenders recognize people with disabilities as potential commercial customers. The campaign, which will be national in scope and directed toward state- and federally-chartered banks and other lending institutions, will include portrayals of business owners with disabilities who are succeeding in business and educational presentations by entrepreneurs who have disabilities. This activity could be complemented by local efforts.

      • A portion of the campaign targeting business and industry will focus on getting mainstream business and small business development programs to recognize the viability of people with disabilities as potential customers, and on getting employers in general to view employees with disabilities as an investment which will increase the efficiency or profitability of their businesses.

      • The campaign will include efforts that focus on making people with disabilities aware of mainstream employment-related services, letting them know that these services are available to them, and providing highly visible role models. Successful entrepreneurs who have disabilities will also be profiled through a variety of mainstream media outlets to increase awareness about the self-employment potential of people with disabilities.

   2. ACTION #2 -- The Department of Labor will work to encourage partnerships with employers, members of the disability community, families, providers, foundations, faith-based organizations, and other important partners.

      Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agency in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to encourage and initiate collaborative, creative, and innovative approaches that further partnerships between the public and private sector.

      Background: For people with significant disabilities to fully participate in the workforce of the 21^st century, increased cooperative and collaborative activities between the government and private sector partners will be critical. Employers, members of the disability community, families, and providers are essential partners in creating employment possibilities and needed supports for people with disabilities. Many public and private entities have begun hiring people with disabilities. Others may be unaware of how to access this untapped resource of potential employees, or are uncertain of how to organize supports for accommodating them into the workplace. Partnerships are essential to begin addressing these and other areas. In addition, businesses willing and eager to hire people with disabilities must be able to find candidates who have the skills needed to perform the jobs in question. Businesses will also benefit from incorporating job-carving and other strategies for customizing employment into their work places. Finally, to increase employment for young people and adults with disabilities, foundations must be enlisted and leveraged as partners in states and local communities.

      Plan of Action: The following activities constitute DOL's initial plan of action:

      • ODEP, in conjunction with other appropriate agencies and departments, will convene a key group of foundation leaders for a foundation summit to examine how government agencies, businesses, and the foundation sector can work together to facilitate employment for young people and adults with disabilities. The summit will provide an opportunity to elevate understanding of issues related to employment of people with disabilities, and the increased role that the foundation community could play in addressing barriers. It will also provide the opportunity for foundation leaders to integrate initiatives relating to employment for people with disabilities into existing foundation initiatives, and ensure that such initiatives are accessible to people with disabilities.

      • ODEP will ensure that its Employment Assistance Referral Network (EARN) program, a national toll-free telephone and electronic information referral service to assist employers who are seeking potential workers with disabilities in their geographic area, includes expertise on customizing employment for people with disabilities. EARN acts as an intermediary for the employer by surveying the relevant agencies and reporting to the employer those agencies that have applicants with disabilities who meet the employer's requirements. EARN facilitates access to employment because employers need only make one contact to find qualified applicants with disabilities. EARN also supports implementation of the Olmstead Executive Order by identifying and incorporating information into the EARN database about disability service providers who are working with individuals with significant disabilities who are seeking to leave institutions or who want to avoid institutionalization.

      • ODEP will work with the Business Leadership Network and other employer stakeholders to secure their input, and to ensure that they have the information and assistance they need to facilitate customized employment for people with significant disabilities. In addition, ODEP will encourage BLNs to consider the particular needs of people with significant disabilities as they develop their activities. This activity will be coordinated with the public awareness campaign targeted to employers, so that they understand the benefits of strategies for customizing employment.

      • PWBA will work with the other agencies with which it shares jurisdiction in administering the health laws to provide expanded education and outreach, guidance, and other activities to provide a coordinated and comprehensive program for the disabled community.

   3. ACTION #3 -- The Department of Labor will work to increase participation of community organizations in providing customized employment services and opportunities to individuals with disabilities, and encourage their role in partnerships with other providers at the local level.

      Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy and the Employment and Training Administration, working closely with the Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.

      Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to encourage and initiate innovative community-based employment programs, both secular and faith-based, offering another potential avenue for increasing employment services for people with disabilities.

      Background: President Bush's Faith-Based and Community Initiative mandates that federal policy and programs be realigned to better collaborate with community organizations such as grassroots, nonprofit and faith-based organizations. Historically, while many secular and faith-based organizations have focused on meeting the needs of people with disabilities for food, housing, and/or health services, there has been significantly less focus on providing the types of direct employment and training services which foster long term self-sufficiency.

      Plan of Action: The following constitutes initial actions to be undertaken in this area:

      • ODEP will collaborate with ETA to reach out to community organizations, both secular and faith-based, to encourage them to include people with disabilities in their programs. ODEP and ETA will also work together to foster the development of promising practices as models for organizations interested in increasing employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

      • ODEP will develop technical assistance and training to help small community organizations, both faith-based and secular, to increase their capacity, improve their competence, and expand their programs relating to the employment of people with disabilities.

      • ODEP will coordinate with ETA to provide these types of organizations with the information they need for the following: effective grant writing; responding to requests for proposals and other solicitations; and accessing other funding opportunities relating to employment of people with disabilities.

      • ODEP will assist DOL's Center for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in conducting outreach, providing technical assistance on matters relating to accessibility, and helping obtain input and buy-in from the disability community.

      And we would challenge you to prepare the community by educating people in industries like restaurants and hotels and even going into churches to assist people with sensitivity training and communication so that people could have more involvement in the community. -- Marilyn King, Family and Friends Actively Communicating Together for Successful Supports, Kenton, Tennessee.

5. Increase the Number of People with Disabilities Working in the Federal Workforce, with the Department of Labor Leading by Example Through its Commitment to Hiring People with Disabilities.

   Lead Agencies: The Department of Labor's lead agencies in this effort will be the Office of Disability Employment Policy, the Office of the 21^st Century Workforce, and the Office for the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management.

   Purpose: The purpose of this activity is to increase hiring of people with disabilities in the federal workplace. As the President's Executive Order on Community-Based Alternatives for Individuals with Disabilities is implemented, employment of people with significant disabilities within the federal government should represent a viable pathway to economic independence and inclusion within the workforce and the community.

   Background: America cannot afford to leave anyone behind as it moves into the 21^st century. Every American should have the opportunity to reach his or her full potential in life, particularly in the workforce. Consistent with the ideals recognized in the New Freedom Initiative, there is a need to explore new frontiers that will bring more Americans with disabilities, including those with significant disabilities, into the workforce and into the mainstream of American life. The federal government must lead by example.

   A structural mechanism is already in place to facilitate DOL's activities in support of this effort. OASAM's Human Resources Center (HRC), which has general oversight responsibility for all aspects of human resources management within DOL, works with DOL's agencies in implementing workforce planning and restructuring efforts, including recruitment of people with disabilities, ensuring equal access to job vacancies for people with disabilities within DOL, and providing assistive technology and services to qualified applicants and DOL employees with disabilities. HRC is also responsible for implementing DOL's Plan for Recruitment and Hiring of People with Disabilities. This plan outlines steps to increase the hiring of people with disabilities in DOL over the next five years.

   HRC's Disability Employment Program supports people with disabilities in seeking and attaining employment by providing a single point of contact for all recruiting efforts and for intern programs within DOL for persons with disabilities. The Disability Employment Program Manager represents DOL at job fairs, workshops, conferences, and on several government-wide committees regarding the employment of persons with disabilities, building partnerships with community-based organizations in the local Washington, D.C. metropolitan area and around the country to assist persons with disabilities in finding employment within DOL.

   HRC's Central Office of Assistive Services and Technology (COAST) program supports people with disabilities by providing a "one-stop" shop for accommodations and assistive services. Services available include: sign language interpreting services; technical assistance on disability-related issues; documents in alternative formats; work site accessibility assessments; a limited amount of assistive equipment available for loan; and other disability-related services. The Safety and Health Center's Return to Work Program seeks to help injured DOL employees on worker's compensation in returning to work. As a result of these and other related recruitment efforts, DOL is proud to report that since October 1, 2000, 110 people with disabilities have been hired.

   Plan of Action: DOL's initial plan of action will focus on four areas: recruitment and placement; reasonable accommodations; employment opportunities for young people with disabilities; and promoting telecommuting to increase employment of people with disabilities.

   • Recruitment and Placement: The following actions will be implemented to ensure that DOL's goal of hiring more people with disabilities is met and that the number of people with targeted disabilities increases as part of this effort:
     • The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy (OASP) will seek to identify proposed DOL policies, programs, and regulations that may have the unintended effect of discouraging people with disabilities from achieving full employment and community integration, and will work with the appropriate agencies to address these barriers.

     • OASAM will ensure that all DOL vacancy announcements include a statement on the availability of reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities.

     • HRC will work with the Social Security Administration to develop a Memorandum of Understanding that promotes DOL recruitment and hiring of individuals with disabilities who are participating in SSA's Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program.

     • A number of individual agencies within DOL will also be implementing plans for recruiting people with disabilities and identifying organizations and associations representing persons with disabilities that can be utilized to expand outreach to this sector of applicants.

   • Reasonable Accommodations: DOL will continue its efforts to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities. The following initial action plan will be implemented to ensure the availability and provision of reasonable accommodations, a factor that is critical to the retention of employees with disabilities:
     • CRC is in the process of finalizing a DOL-wide process for responding to requests for reasonable accommodation. A management information system database was created by OASAM's Information Technology Center for CRC's use in tracking information required by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Agency managers and supervisors will be be responsible for submitting the Request for Reasonable Accommodation Form to CRC for data input. CRC will also be providing training on DOL revised reasonable accommodation procedures as part of the EEO training for managers and supervisors.

     • HRC's COAST program will continue to support the reasonable accommodations needs of employees with disabilities by providing interpreting services for employee training and technical assistance for DOL employees, and providing training to employees regarding disability etiquette and TTY use.

     • HRC's Disability Employment Program will: (1) develop a database for tracking all services that will assist in complying with EEOC guidelines; (2) make information about all HRC's services available; and (3) work in partnership with other federal agencies such as the Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program at the Department of Defense to formalize access to regional programs and services to assist DOL employees in identifying appropriate accommodations in both regional/field offices, and the National Office.

   • Employment Opportunities for Young People with Disabilities: As a model employer, DOL's efforts to increase employment for people with disabilities must include young people, including college-age youth. Using existing internship and mentoring programs, DOL will implement the following activities:
     • ODEP's Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) will continue to serve as a resource for hiring highly motivated post-secondary students and recent graduates with disabilities who are eager to prove their abilities in the workforce. In FY 2002, DOL estimates it will be able to hire 50 interns.

     • ODEP will coordinate DOL's activities around year long mentoring for young people with disabilities, including DOL's annual participation in Disability Mentoring Day in 2002.

     • ODEP will work with HRC to establish and promote the WRP program in each DOL agency.

   • Promoting Telecommuting: In announcing the New Freedom Initiative, President Bush stated, "Some 40 million Americans today work out of their homes. For most, it is a convenience. For workers with disabilities, it is a revolution." The following activities constitute DOL's initial plan relating to increasing telecommuting opportunities for people with disabilities within DOL:
     • ODEP and OASAM's HRC will work together to identify current positions within DOL that can be relocated to home-based or other off-site facilities. This significant initiative is intended to help boost awareness of the potential, and expand opportunities, for all federal employees to telework, including those with disabilities, by harnessing the power and potential of new communications and information technologies.

     • ODEP and HRC will work together to recruit people with disabilities to work in DOL's customer-service 1-800 number call center. This call center allows the public to call in on an "800" number to ask questions and get information about a large number of DOL agency programs and activities.

     • HRC and ODEP will work in partnership with OPM to provide technical assistance and support on identifying possible ways in which DOL jobs can be redesigned to allow for teleworking.

     • HRC will work with ODEP to implement the federally mandated telecommuting initiative, guided by OPM and General Services Administration (GSA). Each executive agency is required to establish policies on telecommuting, with 25% of federal employees covered by such policies in 2001, and the remaining covered, in 25% increments, over the next three years. A new OPM/GSA web site will provide guidance to DOL and other agencies as they implement their new telework plans for current employees.

1. Increase Access to, and Choice and Customization of, Employment Services
   • Increase and improve access to mainstream workforce development programs, services, and systems by people with disabilities -- particularly those individuals who are transitioning from institutions to their communities, at risk of institutionalization, or in non-work settings -- and coordinate and leverage resources among those systems at the federal, state and local levels.

   • Increase employment choices and earnings opportunities for people with disabilities by expanding capacity for individually designed jobs and customized employment through the workforce investment system.

   • Increase successful transitions by young people with disabilities to customized employment and post-secondary activities.

   • Expand self-employment, small business, micro-enterprise development, and other entrepreneurial opportunities for people with disabilities who want to transition from institutions to their communities, or who are at risk of institutionalization or segregation.

   • Increase One-Stop Center employment services for people with psychiatric disabilities, including those transitioning to the community from institutions or those who are at risk of placement in residential facilities.

2. Increase Availability and Quality of Personal Care Assistants and Community Workers
   • Increase the availability of, and provide career advancement opportunities for, personal assistants and other direct care staff and community workers.

3. Leverage Technology Resources
   • Ensure that people with disabilities, employers, One-Stop Centers, and others have access to information and to the skills training needed to succeed in the 21^st century workforce.

4. Increase Innovative and Strategic Partnerships
   • Aggressively promote positive images of people with disabilities as workers and community participants through a multi-part awareness campaign, countering negative and erroneous stereotypes and attitudinal barriers.

   • Promote public-private partnerships with employers, members of the disability community, families, providers, foundations and other critical partners.

   • Increase participation of community organizations, both faith-based and secular, and foundations in providing customized services to individuals with disabilities, including their role in partnering with other providers at the local level.

5. Increase the Number of People with Disabilities in the Federal Workforce
   • Work across DOL agencies to facilitate access to qualified applicants with disabilities, including applicants with significant disabilities.

   • Ensure provision of reasonable accommodations and assistive services to people with significant disabilities in the DOL.

   • Increase the participation of young adults with significant disabilities, including those transitioning to the community from institutions, in internship and mentoring programs.

   • Collaborate with DOL agencies to increase telework awareness and opportunities for federal employees with disabilities and conduct a research effort to learn more about telework's potential impact on workers, employers and the American workforce.

• ODEP will work to foster collaboration between DOL and other federal departments on activities that relate directly or indirectly to employment of people with disabilities. These agencies/departments include, but are not limited to the following: the Department of Education's Rehabilitation Services Administration and Office of Special Education Programs; the Social Security Administration; the Department of Health and Human Services' Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services; the Small Business Administration; the Department of Housing and Urban Development; and the Department of Transportation. ODEP will work with the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities to implement this collaboration.

• ODEP will facilitate the development of an employment-focused memorandum of understanding (MOU) between agencies and departments that are essential partners to the workforce investment system. The purpose of the MOU would be to (1) clarify integrated employment as a goal for adults with significant disabilities; (2) coordinate agency resources and capacity building initiatives at the federal level; and (3) serve as a model for state level coordination to ensure that employment becomes part of the planning process for people transitioning to the community.

• ODEP will collaborate with the DOL Employment and Training Administration, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Transportation to integrate housing and transportation services within One-Stop Centers.

• ODEP will work to increase development of micro-enterprise opportunities for people with disabilities, including individuals with significant disabilities, through participation on the Federal Interagency Workgroup on Microenterprise Development, an entity that encourages development of micro-enterprise in America through policymaking, support, technical assistance, and funding for micro-enterprise programs.

• ODEP will work with other relevant agencies, including the Small Business Administration, the Social Security Administration, the Treasury Department, and the Rehabilitation Services Administration, to educate lenders about the viability of small business ownership for people with disabilities. Any strategy addressing this area must consider the effects of current policy, as well as the need for access to micro-loan and venture capital funds.

• ODEP will collaborate with relevant federal agencies to examine the possibility of increasing government procurement opportunities for small business owners with disabilities.

• DOL recommends convening a conference on micro-enterprise, self-employment and small business for people with disabilities. Such a conference would elevate and promote increased self-employment, micro-enterprise and other small business opportunities among people with disabilities, including people with significant disabilities transitioning to the community from segregated environments.

• The Department of Labor will work with other agencies to promote the full inclusion of people with psychiatric disabilities in workforce investment programs and services. ODEP will consult with the Task Force, HHS's Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, SBA, OPM, as well as relevant stakeholders.

• ODEP will work to develop a cross-agency action plan to increase the availability and quality of personal assistants, and to identify options for educational, training and career advancement opportunities for personal assistants and other direct care staff and community service workers.

• ODEP and the Task Force will work with the Department of Education, HHS, IRS, the Department of Agriculture (USDA), HUD, and other agencies as appropriate, to improve the availability, affordability, and accessibility of technology in the school, home, and the workplace for youth and adults with significant disabilities. Possible activities include developing incentives that allow both employers and individuals to offset ancillary associated costs (such as specialized training, access to assistive technology, and high-speed telephone service) and exploring the possibility of arranging Internet service usable by people with disabilities through local and regional offices of the USDA, HUD, and the U.S. Postal Service.

• ODEP will collaborate with the Corporation for National and Community Service's program to encourage its State Commissions to expand support of demonstrations that include youth with significant disabilities, and use of volunteers to focus on improving information technology skills for youth with disabilities.

• ODEP will expand its DisAbilityDirect.gov web site into an interagency federal portal to better serve the employment-related needs of people with disabilities.

• ODEP will collaborate with relevant federal agencies to launch a multi-faceted public awareness and education campaign to decrease stigma, eliminate attitudinal barriers, and increase employment opportunities for adults and youth with significant disabilities. This effort will target business and industry, lenders, small businesses, families, and others, with a particular focus on hiring people with significant disabilities.

• ODEP, in conjunction with other appropriate agencies and departments, will convene a key group of foundation leaders for a foundation summit to examine how government agencies, businesses, and the foundation sector can work together to facilitate employment for young people and adults with disabilities. The summit will provide an opportunity to elevate understanding of the issues related to employment of people with disabilities, as well as the role that the foundation community could play in addressing barriers. In addition, it will provide the opportunity for foundation leaders to integrate initiatives relating to employment for people with disabilities into existing foundation initiatives and ensure that such initiatives are accessible to people with disabilities.

1. Bureau of International Labor Affairs
2. Bureau of Labor Statistics
3. Employment Standards Administration
4. Employment and Training Administration
5. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management
6. Office of the Chief Information Officer
7. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy
8. Office of Small Business Programs
9. Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration
10. Veterans Employment and Training Service
11. Women's Bureau

The Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) carries out DOL's international responsibilities and assists in formulating international economic, trade, and immigration policies affecting American workers by doing the following:

• Representing the Secretary of Labor on international issues in the inter-agency policy-making processes chaired by the National Economic Council and the National Security Council.

• Representing the U.S. government at the International Labor Organization.

• Implementing the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation, the labor supplemental agreement to NAFTA.

• Issuing reports on intern