----- Original Message -----
From: "Justice For All Moderator" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Thursday, May 25, 2000 9:14 PM
Subject: Alexis Herman on Expanding Employment Initiatives


>
>       Alexis Herman on Expanding Employment Initiatives
>
> JOHN M. WILLIAMS, (Business Week) [log in to unmask], writes:
> A Talk with Labor Secretary Alexis Herman
>
> She comments on race and disability bias and how to get people with
> disabilities into the workforce.
>
> Alexis Herman is the first African American to hold the position of U.S.
> Labor Secretary. Since she took the post three years ago this May, she
> has focused the Labor Dept. on two major goals: better preparing the
> workforce for the New Economy and improving the quality of workplaces
> across the country -- which also means addressing the concerns of the
> disabled. She believes people with disabilities will provide a larger
> share of the future workforce. Recently, I sat down with Herman to
> discuss her initiatives. Here are edited excerpts from our conversation:
>
> Q: What are your major initiatives for benefiting people with
disabilities?
> A: We've looked systemically at what keeps people with disabilities out
> of the workforce and asked what can we do to eliminate those barriers.
> We know that, in spite of today's strong economy, about three out of four
> people with disabilities who want to work are not working. How do we make
> it happen for them?
> The result, largely from recommendations by the Presidential Task Force
> on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, is the most comprehensive
> national-employment agenda ever.
>
> Q: For example?
> A: We passed the Work Incentives Improvement Act, which allows states to
> provide Medicaid benefits for people with disabilities who go to work
> and allows those with Social Security Disability Insurance new options
> to work without losing benefits. Workers with disabilities shouldn't
> have to choose between their health and their job.
>
> The President also directed the federal government to become a model
> employer of people with disabilities. We will set the example for the
> private sector. Under the Rehabilitation Act of 1998, the federal
> government has to ensure that its Web sites, software, and hardware
> are fully accessible. The government buys huge quantities of software
> and hardware -- more than any other purchaser -- so this will help
> to change the whole industry, and as a result, accessibility will
> improve dramatically in the private sector.
>
> Q: What's next?
> A: In the budget for fiscal 2001, we have asked for funding of a new
> Office of Disability Policy, Evaluation & Technical Assistance. This
> office -- at this high level -- will ensure that every opportunity is
> made available to people with disabilities throughout the employment
> and training system.
>
> I think from these key examples you can begin to get the picture of
> just how comprehensive our efforts have been. We want to ensure a
> workplace where people with disabilities are the familiar faces we
> work with everyday.
>
> Q: How effective have these initiatives been?
> A: They're brand-new, so it's too early to say. But we will evaluate
> them. That will be one of the functions of the new Office of Disability
> Policy, Evaluation &Technical Assistance, along with monitoring the
> employment rate of people with disabilities. We're even developing
> new statistical tools to do so. We know that the issues and barriers
> to employment are complex and require a comprehensive and collaborative
> approach from all federal agencies.
>
> Q: How key is access to this collaborative approach?
> A: People with disabilities know that inclusive mainstream employment
> leads to greater economic and social inclusion. So that's our focus -
> access, making sure that people with disabilities have the same access
> to training, to employment services, the same access to the state-run
> one-stop career centers that are becoming the essential bridge to jobs
> for everyone.
>
> Q: What are the weaknesses of these initiatives?
> A: As is often the case when you're trying to solve a long-standing
> problem, there is no single, surefire solution. But we've been
> fortunate to have the support of President Clinton and Vice-President
> Gore and widespread support in Congress. We expect the new disability
> office to be funded, and that will give us the means to evaluate what
> we've been doing and where we're going.
>
> Q: But what happens after you leave office?
> A: I think these initiatives will continue, because the need to
> include people with disabilities in our workforce is great and the
> reward for doing so is too large to be ignored. We've made it clear
> that people with disabilities must be a part of the workforce of the
> future.
>
> Q: Why are you so concerned about this? Often, people become involved
> in the field of disabilities if they have someone in their family
> with a disability. Is that the case with you?
> A: No, none of my family members has a disability. But I understand
> that people with disabilities have experienced a history of prejudice
> and discrimination that has nothing to do with their ability. As a
> black woman who grew up in the South, that's something I know about.
> It's only natural that I would care as much about ending discrimination
> against people with disabilities as I do ending discrimination against
> women and minorities.
>
> Q: I understand that the 11 million unemployed people with disabilities
> are not included in the monthly unemployment numbers released by the
> government. Is this true?
> A: It isn't that they're not included, but they're not identified as
> a separate category. The monthly unemployment figure represents all
> people aged 16 and over who are not employed but are looking for work
> or are on layoff.
>
> We think an employment measure for people with disabilities would be
> helpful for policymakers, analysts, advocates, and others concerned
> with their labor-market status. We don't know how many people with
> disabilities are represented in the monthly employment number. And we
> need that information. Several federal agencies, including our Bureau
> of Labor Statistics, are working to develop a reliable way to
> measure the employment rate of people with disabilities.
>
> Q: With everything that is known about the abilities of people with
> disabilities, why is it so difficult for them to be hired?
> A: In many ways, it reminds me of my experience and the experience of
> other African Americans -- doors were closed simply because of your
> race. Too often, doors are closed to Americans with disabilities simply
> because of their disability. And because they have not had the
> opportunity to be in the mainstream, other people have not had the
> opportunity to learn from them. We must continue to work to change
> that pattern.
>
> JOHN M. WILLIAMS
> [log in to unmask]
>